State, Federal Officials Report Recovery Progress For Nisqually Earthquake Anniversary
Release Date: February 25, 2002
Release Number: R10-02-31
Camp Murray, WA -- One year after the magnitude 6.8 Nisqually Earthquake struck Washington State, disaster recovery work has made substantial progress to help thousands of state residents toward recovery, state and federal officials said.
The earthquake, the largest to hit the state in more than a half century, caused damage across much of the state. In all, 24 counties and 25 Indian Reservations were included in a Presidential Disaster Declaration issued for the state on March 1, 2001, by President Bush.
"Nisqually Earthquake recovery efforts have been considerably larger than any previous state disaster," said Glen Woodbury, director of the Washington Emergency Management Division. "Excellent cooperation from our Federal Emergency Management Agency partners has allowed us to make good progress in the first 12 months of recovery operations. We are on track to complete the recovery work by the 2005 federal deadline."
"Two goals in our recovery are to ensure that Washington residents receive the disaster aid to which they are entitled and to rebuild our damaged homes, public buildings and communities so they can better withstand future earthquakes and disasters," Woodbury said.
FEMA Regional Director John Pennington said Washington's disaster declaration was one of the fastest in agency history and enabled victims to begin to receive financial aid only days after the earthquake."
"Thanks to a lot of hard work and the concerted efforts of state and federal disaster program workers, we have already obligated funds for 82 percent of the public facilities that are eligible for state and federal disaster aid," Pennington said.
A total of 41,414 persons registered for Nisqually disaster aid. The registrations were more than three times the number of any previous disaster in Washington.
The following is an outline of the Nisqually recovery program through Feb. 15, 2002:
- The Federal Emergency Management Agency has approved $52.6 million for temporary housing assistance and minimal repair grants.
- Inspectors completed 37,234 damage verifications in the declared counties.
- The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has approved 6,253 loans totaling $83.4 million for homeowners, renters, businesses of all sizes, and private non-profit organizations.
- The Public Assistance Program, serving more than 300 public and non-profit agencies and Indian tribes, estimates it will obligate $75 million for more than 1,800 eligible repair projects.
- The Individual and Family Grant program approved $3.3 million for residents affected by the earthquake. Grants assist with serious disaster-related needs and necessary expenses not covered by insurance or other disaster programs.
- Washington expects the Nisqually Earthquake disaster assistance to fund $21.6 million in grants to help communities and public agencies reduce hazard vulnerability and to avoid future disaster damages.
For the designated counties as of Feb.15, 2002, the total number of applicants; the assistance approved for temporary assistance repair grants; and low-interest disaster loans are as follows:
| County | Registrations | Temporary Housing Assistance | SBA Disaster Loans |
|---|---|---|---|
| Benton | 47 | $62,466 | $40,500 |
| Chelan | 115 | $150,074 | $83,200 |
| Clallam | 132 | $137,504 | $73,800 |
| Clark | 199 | $219,479 | $206,800 |
| Cowlitz | 151 | $298,445 | $321,500 |
| Grays Harbor | 2,089 | $3,678,352 | $2,454,800 |
| Island | 117 | $147,727 | $171,600 |
| Jefferson | 99 | $124,599 | $181,700 |
| King | 16,318 | $19,918,890 | $41,928,300 |
| Kitsap | 2,666 | $3,262,005 | $4,770,600 |
| Kittitas | 110 | $120,004 | $74,800 |
| Lewis | 1,226 | $1,864,209 | $2,182,300 |
| Mason | 802 | $1,085,412 | $1,207,900 |
| Pacific | 234 | $463,076 | $235,400 |
| Pierce | 8,485 | $11,943,806 | $12,091,300 |
| Skagit | 402 | $479,711 | $896,200 |
| Skamania | 7 | $8,859 | $3,000 |
| Snohomish | 1,530 | $1,319,433 | $1,874,400 |
| Thurston | 5,433 | $5,950,579 | $13,818,000 |
| Wahkiakum | 32 | $58,823 | $53,700 |
| Whatcom | 711 | $778,467 | $441,500 |
| Yakima | 457 | $618,912 | $347,500 |
Last Modified: Thursday, 28-Aug-2003 09:34:00