Putting cows on the front page since 1885.

Pennsylvania Recovery Six Months Since Ida Hit

Six months have passed since a major federal disaster was declared for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania after the remnants of Hurricane Ida left many Pennsylvanians with loss and damage. On Sept. 10, 2021, President Biden signed the declaration that allowed FEMA to assist. The declaration provided Individual Assistance (IA) for eight counties including Bedford, and Public Assistance for 12, also including Bedford County.

The registration period for individuals to apply for FEMA assistance ended on Jan. 10, 2022. In that time, more than 83,000 households applied. As a result, between FEMA, the U.S. Small Business Administration, and the National Flood insurance Program, more than $265 Million in federal assistance was approved for Pennsylvanians for repairs and other disaster-caused needs.

• More than $88.2 million in Individual Assistance grants for housing assistance.

• More than $28.6 million in grants for Other Needs Assistance to homeowners and renters to repair or replace certain household items, pay for disaster-related medical and dental expenses, and certain other disaster-related expenses.

• The U.S. Small Business Administration approved more than $53.6 million in low-interest disaster loans for 1,150 households and 79 businesses to repair and replace damaged property and contents.

• The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) paid policyholders more than $94.7 million for 1,827 claims filed to repair and rebuild flood-damaged property and contents.

• The Disaster Recovery Centers closed on Nov. 20. During their mission, 1,712 survivors visited the centers.

• During their mission, which ended Oct. 5, Disaster Survivor Assistance teams canvassed neighborhoods in all eight designated counties. They visited 5,330 homes and met with 2,172 survivors.

Disaster response really does involve the whole community, including local, state, and federal agencies, the private sector, nonprofit, voluntary, and faith-based organizations. Volunteers continue their work to help Pennsylvanians who were impacted by the remnants of Hurricane Ida get back to a more normal life.

FEMA’s Public Assistance Program (PA) is a grant program which provides funding to state and local governments and certain types of private nonprofit organizations for rebuilding necessary infrastructure following a presidential disaster declaration.

221 Requests for Public Assistance have been submitted for review. 213 have been approved.

• Out of those applications, 566 unique projects have been created.

• 16 of those projects are currently with the Consolidated Resources Center for development.

• 10 projects have been obligated, with a federal share of $1,547,736.

• The disaster recovery process is moving along well with Exploratory Calls (ECs) and Recovery Scoping Meetings (RSMs).

EC’s – 84 percent of approved ECs completed.

RSM’s – 76 percent of approved RSMs completed.

 

Reader Comments(0)