Mower added for disaster aid

Published 12:00 am Monday, June 25, 2001

Mower County is one of three counties added to the Minnesota declaration for disaster assistance by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Monday, June 25, 2001

Mower County is one of three counties added to the Minnesota declaration for disaster assistance by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

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Earlier this week, the counties of Kandiyohi and Lake of the Woods were added to the list of eligible jurisdictions. Based on a review of damage data gathered by federal and state disaster recovery officials, Crow Wing and Meeker counties also were added to the list for individual assistance and Mower County for public assistance.

According to FEMA, federal funding will be available to affected local governments to pay 75 percent of the approved costs for debris removal, emergency services related to the disaster and repairing or replacing damaged public facilities, such as roads, buildings and utilities.

Mower County was previously eligible for individual assistance.

Residents and business owners who have suffered damages from storms, flooding and winds dating back to March 24 are eligible to apply for assistance. They must call a toll-free registration number, (800) 462-9029 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday until further notice.

Callers should have the following information available to help speed up the application process: Current phone number, address at the time of the disaster and address where now staying, Social Security number and a general list of damages and losses suffered.

Among the FEMA programs available to eligible applicants are disaster housing assistance, individual and family grant programs and disaster unemployment assistance.

Also, the U.S. Small Business Administration has programs for home and personal property and business disaster loans.

Early estimates put damages to the various infrastructures in Mower County over the $200,000 mark earlier this year.

Bob Nelson, Austin-Mower County emergency preparedness director, contacted all of the 20 townships in Mower County to learn of their damages.

The Mower County Board of Commissioners also heard from individual townships, seeking the county’s help in repairing damages suffered by the variety of heavy rains, flooding, winds and other damages in the series of storms that swept through earlier this year.

Call Lee Bonorden at 434-2232 or e-mail him at lee.bonorden@austindailyherald.com.