GN1 FILE PHOTO. Photo courtesy of Farmers RECC.
By MICHAEL CRIMMINS
Glasgow News 1
Emergency Management Director Garland Gilliam announced that the county would be receiving roughly $150,000 in reimbursement for storm-related cleanup from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and from the commonwealth.
As previously reported, since President Joe Biden approval of the Federal Disaster Declaration on July 23, Barren County came to be eligible for FEMA reimbursement for the cleanup necessitated by the severe weather that swept through the county on the weekend before Memorial Day, which even saw an EF1 tornado in southern Barren County.
“When we submitted …the hours each road department employee spends picking up trees, we get reimbursed for run time on [road department] vehicles, we reimburse their salaries and when we pile it all up at the road department and burn it we get reimbursed for disposing of it and tending that,” Gilliam said. “So there is a lot that goes into this.”
The reimbursement is divided into roughly three categories: debris removal, emergency protective measures and roads — which, Gilliam said, required three tile replacements.
The debris removal had FEMA reimbursing the county $94,287.29, the protective measures category came in at $13,099.36 and the road reimbursement was $20,672.22.
Gilliam said FEMA reimbursed for 75 percent of the projects costs with the specific county typically making up the remaining 25 percent, but, since Kentucky “has so many disasters,” the state reimbursed 12 percent of the project costs in addition to FEMA’s 75 percent.
When all was totaled the reimbursement came in at $148,548.30 with some administrative costs still pending reimbursement.
He pointed out that this falls under “public reimbursement” and not “individual assistance.” According to FEMA, “assistance will be determined by comparing your recorded essential losses and serious needs to the types of assistance available within FEMA programs and services.”
“What kills me is you’ve got people that went to FEMA and said ‘my house was destroyed’ and they don’t qualify,” Gilliam said. “So it is good news, but it’s liable to [upset] people.”
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