News Releases
Office of Governor Gary Locke
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - November 14, 2003
Contact:  Governor's Communications Office, 360-902-4136
Alt Contact:  Rob Harper, Emergency Management Division, 425-290-4129

Gov. Gary Locke to Request Additional Federal Aid for Flood-Damaged Roads, Bridges and Buildings

Gov. Gary Locke today requested federal aid for the repair of an estimated $10.7 million in public infrastructure damage caused by flooding and storms between Oct. 15 and 23 in Washington state. The request would apply to public facility damage in Clallam, Grays Harbor, Jefferson, Mason, Skagit, Snohomish and Whatcom counties.

If approved by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the federal disaster aid would pay 75 percent of the eligible costs to repair or replace damaged public facilities, to remove debris, and to reimburse emergency work to save lives and protect property.

“The October flooding seriously damaged a number of roads, bridges and public facilities in our state,” Locke said. “This additional federal aid is vital to our flood recovery efforts, and I am urging FEMA to act quickly so we can start making necessary repairs.”

The public assistance aid request was prepared from surveys completed by local jurisdictions in coordination with the state Emergency Management Division of the Washington Military Department and FEMA.

Diane Offord, state coordinating officer for the October flooding and storms disaster, signed the request today at the Everett Disaster Field Office and formally submitted it to Tony Russell, federal coordinating officer for the disaster.

Fifteen Washington counties were declared a federal disaster area Nov. 7 for the October storms and flooding. Federal aid was approved in these counties for the Individual and Households Program, which aids families and individuals, and for the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, which uses a percentage of the disaster assistance funds to fund projects to prevent future disaster damage.

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Related links: www.governor.wa.gov; www.emd.wa.gov; www.fema.com





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