EXCLUSIVE: Sen. Banks, Gary Mayor Melton talked to President Trump about Storm Recovery on Monday

Click here for the full story from The Times of Northwest Indiana or read below:

EXCLUSIVE: U.S. Sen. Jim Banks, R-Indiana, and Gary Mayor Eddie Melton spoke to President Donald Trump over the phone on Monday, providing him with an update about "the good things going on in Gary," while also keeping him in the loop about storm damage and the impacts being felt on the ground by residents.

Trump approved a Presidential Emergency Declaration for Indiana at Gov. Mike Braun's request on Aug. 15.

Banks said on Monday that Trump knows about another request from the Indiana Congressional delegation requesting direct assistance to families, homeowners, renters and others who have been impacted by the Aug. 11 derecho.

"The president loves Gary and has a long history in Gary," Banks said. Trump was behind the riverboat Princess Casino, which opened in 1996 at Buffington Harbor.

"In my conversation with President Trump, I made it clear that Gary needs immediate access to FEMA resources to support our recovery," Melton said in a statement shared with The Times. "This federal assistance is critical to restoring our neighborhoods, rebuilding our community and making sure Gary emerges from this storm stronger and more resilient than before."

Banks told The Times about the call with Trump in an interview while in Gary early Monday afternoon. Banks said he, Trump and Melton also discussed the Nippon deal for U.S. Steel, which his administration approved last summer.

Melton and Banks took a "comprehensive tour of impacted areas" in Gary, according to a release from the city.

"The devastation our city has experienced demands swift, decisive and unified action at every level of government," Melton said in a statement, adding that he was grateful to Banks for visiting Gary's residents.

"The people here step up to help each other," Banks said.

Banks also visited the Salvation Army's Gary location before meeting with Pastor Eric Boone of the Tree of Life Missionary Baptist Church, whose congregation has served food to thousands in recent days.

"I think that says a lot about this community," Banks said. "Pastor Boone has such a giant heart and what he's been doing and what the other churches are doing in the area is really important."

When asked about NIPSCO and the governor's request for an investigation into the company's preparedness for and response to recent storms, Banks said he believes it's "important to learn from a situation like this."

"What could we have done to avoid it and then learn from it to make sure it doesn't happen again?" Banks said. "For sure, we should definitely investigate that."

But, Banks said, his focus right now remains on getting the final few thousand customers without power in Gary and elsewhere across the Region. As of 2:30 p.m. on Monday, over 9,000 NIPSCO customers were without power. About 6,500 of those customers were in Gary, or about 72% of all remaining outages.

"It's a long road ahead, but when you see leadership like that," Banks said, referring to Melton, "It makes you hopeful that we can all pull together and work together and hopefully, Gary will come out of this better and stronger than ever before."

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