County Executive Robert P. Astorino continued to inspect the damage left in the wake of Hurricane Irene on Monday, as the county began coordinating efforts to obtain federal disaster aid.

"The damage is significant," Astorino said. "We are now in the process of documenting the financial cost so that we can obtain any available federal aid."        

 This effort will be coordinated by the county's Department of Emergency Services. The department is now working with local municipalities to collect the damage information needed to request federal aid.

President Obama declared New York a disaster area even before Hurricane Irene struck. To qualify for aid, the region has to meet a damage threshold of $3 million. Typically, local communities receive a reimbursement of 75 percent of approved claims.

To help commuters deal with disruptions on the Metro North Railroad, Astorino on Tuesday added five additional Manhattan-bound BxM4C buses.

As of Tuesday morning, all county parkways are open. There still may be some issues with traffic signals on parkways and many other roads.

"We are now in the clean up phase and the county is working tirelessly to help return things to normal," Astorino said. "We are assisting municipalities, utilities and transportation partners in whatever way we can to restore service as quickly as possible."

On Monday morning, Astorino was in Rye as he continued to assess damage from the storm. He was joined by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, Congresswoman Nita Lowey, Rye City Mayor Doug French, and other officials, who together toured the downtown shopping district and discussed recovery efforts with merchants and residents.

On Sunday, Astorino was in Elmsford, Mamaroneck, Ossining and Croton among other hard-hit communities. In the evening, he met with Larchmont Mayor Josh Mandell, Mamaroneck Village Mayor Norm Rosenblum, Mamaroneck Town Supervisor Valerie O'Keeffe and residents at the evacuation center being run by the American Red Cross of Greater New York out of Mamaroneck High School. Earlier in the day, he viewed the entire county by helicopter to get a damage assessment.

The county Web site will continue to post updates regularly. You may also follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/westchestergov.

All relevant county departments put together response plans. County departments involved include: Emergency Services, Public Safety, Communications, Health, Public Works, Transportation, Information Technology, Senior Programs, Environmental Facilities Social Services and Parks and Recreation.