MONTPELIER — Governor Peter Shumlin sent a letter to President Barack Obama requesting individual assistance for Washington County businesses and homeowners whose buildings were damaged in the May 26 flooding.

“At the very least his call for inclusion highlights the fact that businesses have been hit violently,” said George Malek, executive vice president for the Central Vermont Chamber of Commerce, who applauded Shumlin's letter.

The letter, which was sent Monday, asks President Obama to add Washington and Caledonia counties to the federal Major Disaster Declaration he previously requested for flooding and storms earlier this spring, saying that the most recent storms that flooded parts of central Vermont were a part of the same weather pattern.

The original request, which was filed May 27, focused largely on Lake Champlain flooding beginning April 23. Although Washington and Caledonia counties had experienced damage in storms before May 26, the damage did not exceed $1.2 million, which is the minimum threshold — in terms of damage to public infrastructure — for a county to be eligible for aid.

In the letter, Shumlin argued the most recent damage to central Vermont towns is too severe for state and local governments to handle alone.

Barre mayor Thom Lauzon estimated that damage to public infrastructure would easily exceed the $1.2 million mark in Barre alone. East Montpelier road foreman Michael Garand estimates road damages in that town could total $500,000, and there is extensive road damage in several other communities.

“I have determined that severe storms and flooding impacting Vermont since April 23, 2011, are of such severity and magnitude that effective response is beyond the capabilities of state and local governments and that supplementary federal assistance is necessary,” Shumlin wrote.

It appears Vermont has sustained enough public damage to qualify for assistance, according to officials, but it is unclear if the damage to private property will be enough to qualify.

Shumlin credited the Congressional delegation for helping to push the request at the White House. On Tuesday, Vermont's two Senators and one Congressman joined Shumlin in writing a letter to the President in support of the disaster declaration.