FEMA Approves Fire Management Assistance Grant For Florida's Calloosahatchee Fire Complex; Fifth Of Spring In Florida 

Release Date: May 10, 2007
Release Number: R4-07-105

ATLANTA, Ga. -- The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has authorized the use of federal funds to reimburse costs to Florida to fight the Calloosahatchee Fire Complex in Lee and Collier counties.

The Florida Division of Emergency Management requested a Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) early Wednesday evening, and it was approved shortly before 10 p.m. The fire had burned nearly 22,000 acres at that point and threatened at least 600 residences involving more than 1,400 individuals in the Naples-area communities of Golden Gate Estates, Picayune and the Island  Vista Mobile Home Park.

In granting the state's request for assistance, Phil May, Regional Administrator for FEMA's Region IV, said, "Our thoughts are with the people who have been displaced, and the firefighters who are working to protect lives and property.  We worked quickly to approve this request."

This FMAG, and another approved minutes later for the Bugaboo Scrub Fire in Georgia, bring the number of FMAGs approved this spring in FEMA Region IV to nine.  The two states and much of the region are under a triple fire threat:  drought, low humidity and generally windy weather.

Federal fire management assistance is provided through the President's Disaster Relief Fund and made available by FEMA to assist in fighting fires that threaten to cause a major disaster. Eligible state firefighting costs covered by the aid must first meet a minimum threshold for costs before assistance is provided. Eligible costs covered by the aid can include expenses for field camps; equipment use, repair and replacement; tools, materials and supplies; and mobilization and demobilization activities. 

FEMA coordinates the federal government's role in preparing for, preventing, mitigating the effects of, responding to, and recovering from all domestic disasters, whether natural or man-made, including acts of terror.

Last Modified: Thursday, 10-May-2007 11:25:12