Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback is seeking a federal disaster declaration for 47 of the state’s 105 counties to help residents and local governments recover from a string of severe storms and flooding.

The Kansas Division of Emergency Management said Friday that Brownback sent the letter to President Barack Obama through the Kansas City, Mo., regional office of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

A series of storms hit Kansas between July 22 and Aug. 16, producing significant damage from high winds and flooding. The storms were blamed on four deaths.

Brownback said in his letter that some of the areas received as much as 500 percent of their normal rainfall total for that time of year, resulting in many roads, bridges and other infrastructure being damaged.