Owen County Designated For Public Assistance 

Release Date: August 22, 2003
Release Number: 1476-41

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Kokomo, IN -- Owen County has been declared eligible for disaster assistance to help local governments impacted by severe storms, tornadoes and flooding that occurred between July 4 and
August 6, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

The assistance was approved following a review of data gathered by federal and state disaster recovery officials. Owen County joins 22 other Indiana counties in which affected local governments are eligible to apply for federal funds to pay 75 percent of the approved cost for debris removal, emergency services related to the disaster, and repairing or replacing damaged public facilities, such as roads, buildings and utilities.

State and federal recovery specialists will contact local officials and representative of certain private non-profit organizations directly concerning procedures for requesting the infrastructure assistance.

A total of 46 Indiana counties are eligible to receive some type of disaster assistance. In addition to Owen County, the other counties previously designated eligible for Public Assistance include Adams, Allen, Carroll, Cass, Clay, Fountain, Greene, Howard, Huntington, Jasper, Jay, Kosciusko, Miami, Newton, Parke, Tippecanoe, Tipton, Union, Wabash, Warren, Wells and White.

The following 43 counties are eligible to receive Individual Assistance for homeowners, renters and business owners: Adams, Allen, Benton, Blackford, Boone, Carroll, Cass, Clay, Clinton, Delaware, Fountain, Fulton, Grant, Hamilton, Hancock, Henry, Howard, Huntington, Jasper, Jay, Lake, Kosciusko, Madison, Marion, Miami, Montgomery, Morgan, Newton, Noble, Parke, Porter, Pulaski, Randolph, Tippecanoe, Tipton, Vanderburgh, Vigo, Wabash, Warren, Wayne, Wells, White, and Whitley.

On March 1, 2003, FEMA became part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. FEMA's continuing mission within the new department is to lead the effort to prepare the nation for all hazards and effectively manage federal response and recovery efforts following any national incident. FEMA also initiates proactive mitigation activities, trains first responders, and manages Citizen Corps, the National Flood Insurance Program and the U.S. Fire Administration.

Last Modified: Monday, 25-Aug-2003 08:21:15