Boone may get $1.5 million in disaster relief
by Scott Nicholson
On Tuesday, the Boone Town Council discussed the recent disaster declaration that would reimburse the town for the cost of ice storm clean-up.
Federal Emergency Management Agency officials had visited the area in January and the town was included in a regional disaster declaration, but the work will likely continue into summer and the federal aid won't begin arriving for months.
Public works staff had logged more than 3,700 overtime hours through Jan. 31. Assistant town manager Jim Byrne said about $35,000 in reimbursements had been turned in for a damaged communications repeater, and said the total cost of the Christmas Day storm was about $1.5 million. "We expect a 100 percent reimbursement," Byrne said.
The state of North Carolina has agreed to pay the 25 percent local match, with 75 percent paid by the federal government.
Federal Emergency Management Agency officials had visited the area in January and the town was included in a regional disaster declaration, but the work will likely continue into summer and the federal aid won't begin arriving for months.
Public works staff had logged more than 3,700 overtime hours through Jan. 31. Assistant town manager Jim Byrne said about $35,000 in reimbursements had been turned in for a damaged communications repeater, and said the total cost of the Christmas Day storm was about $1.5 million. "We expect a 100 percent reimbursement," Byrne said.
The state of North Carolina has agreed to pay the 25 percent local match, with 75 percent paid by the federal government.