Alabama Approved for Federal Disaster Assistance

MONTGOMERY- Governor Robert Bentley on Saturday announced Alabama has received approval for federal disaster assistance in response to severe storms, tornadoes, straight-line winds, and flooding that moved through Alabama earlier in the week.

“Our communities are recovering from the severe weather outbreak, and this federal aid help will ensure Alabamians have resources available to rebuild their lives,” Governor Robert Bentley said. “I appreciate the support of our federal delegation and for the approval by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. We will continue to work with FEMA to assess damages in other areas of the state.”

The disaster declaration allows local governments in five Alabama counties eligible to apply for federal and state infrastructure assistance.  Grants provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency may assist the impacted counties with debris removal, emergency protective measures and the repair, replacement, or restoration of disaster-damaged, publicly owned facilities and the facilities of certain Private Non-Profit (PNP) organizations. The counties eligible for Public Assistance are Baldwin, Jefferson, Lee, Limestone, and Mobile.

The declaration also enables individual citizens in the affected counties of Baldwin, Jefferson, Lee and Limestone to apply for individual assistance.  Temporary housing may be available to those whose residencies were heavily damaged or destroyed.  Funding may also be available for housing repairs and replacement of damaged items.

“Our state and local emergency managers will continue conducting damage assessments to determine if additional counties can be added to this disaster declaration,” said Art Faulkner, Director of the Alabama Emergency Management Agency.  “We are already working with local officials to assess our citizen’s needs.”