New York Governor Andrew Cuomo sent President Donald Trump a letter Aug. 31, asking him to declare a disaster area in Rensselaer County after flooding in a late June/early July storm. Hoosick Falls, already hit with a poisoned water disaster, then was deluged with water in the early summer storm that opened up a sinkhole on Route 7. The disaster declaration allows for more federal help for the affected areas of the county.