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The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe on Friday issued a disaster declaration due to a winter storm earlier this week that caused power outages and hazardous travel.

The tribe is seeking assistance from the Bureau of Indian Affairs and other federal and state agencies "to use all available resources to assist the tribe in addressing all threats to life, property and natural resources," that arose due to the Christmas Day storm.

The declaration, signed by Chairman Dave Archambault II, said hazardous travel conditions continue in the area, and the storm caused "massive disruptions of the normal flow of emergency, business and other vital transportation."

Elliott Ward, emergency manager of Standing Rock, said roads on the reservation are "bad," and have been for the past week.

"(On Christmas Day) people were out getting stuck ... there were people out in the country without power and people were getting snowed in," Ward said. Snowplows have been unable to keep up with all the snow, he said.

According to the National Weather Service, 8-12 inches fell in the Fort Yates area during the most recent storm. To date, approximately 40 inches of snow has fallen in the area.