County OK’d for federal $$$

BY BORYS KRAWCZENIUK, Times-Shamrock Writer

President Barack Obama has declared Luzerne, Susquehanna and Wyoming counties eligible for federal money to fix roads and bridges damaged by Tropical Storm Lee.

The president’s disaster declaration for public assistance – the official term for help for local governments that suffered damage – was issued Saturday, though not widely publicized by the Federal Emergency Management Agency until Monday.

“About time,” said Charlene G. Moser, the emergency management coordinator inSusquehannaCounty.

More than half of her county’s 40 municipalities have reported damage, mostly to roads, with a preliminary estimate of about $1.6 million, she said. “It’s absolutely good news.”

“Up here, a lot of our roads are dirt, so in a storm like this, they really take a beating,” Moser said.

InWyomingCounty, emergency management coordinator Gene Dziak said the declaration is welcome because, “We’ve got a lot of infrastructure that’s totally destroyed.”

“We’ll have probably $5 million, at least $5 million,” he estimated. “We’ve had over $100,000 in dumpster bills just forWyomingCounty.”

Local governments must now formally apply to FEMA for help the way individual flood victims have for weeks.

The federal government will reimburse 75 percent of costs with state and local governments picking up the other 25 percent.

Nonprofit facilities such as cooperative electric and water utilities, custodial care and medical organizations and educational institutions may also apply.

All counties are eligible to apply for money to reduce the risk of future flood damage.

The other counties that were part of the president’s public assistance declaration for Tropical Storm Lee wereBradford,Columbia, Sullivan, Lycoming, Montour, Snyder, Berks, Dauphin,Juniata,Lancaster,Lebanon, andSchuylkill.

The president also added Monroe and three other counties to his disaster declaration for public assistance for Hurricane Irene in late August. Bucks, Lehigh and Montgomery are the other counties.