U.S. Senators Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) today announced more than $6.82 million in federal disaster assistance to offset debris removal costs from the fatal Easter Sunday tornadoes and severe storms in Mississippi last April.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Public Assistance Grants were approved for Covington and Jasper counties, in addition to the Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT). President Trump issued a federal disaster declaration (FEMA DR-4536) related to severe storms on April 12, 2020, which claimed more than a dozen lives, injured hundreds more, and caused extensive damage in counties across the state.
“In the wake of several strong storms and tornadoes this Easter, communities across Mississippi were faced with massive cleanup expenses,” Wicker said. “These funds from FEMA will help our counties recover and prepare for future storms and other natural disasters.”
“These FEMA grants focus on work done to insure public safety following the deadly storms last Easter. Debris removal is an immediate priority following disasters, and this assistance will ease the budgetary burdens on MDOT and Covington and Jasper counties,” said Hyde-Smith, who serves on the Senate appropriations subcommittee with jurisdiction over FEMA.
The FEMA Public Assistance grants, which cover 75 percent of overall project costs, include:
- Covington County – $3,243,015 to offset the cost of removing more than 226,000 cubic yards of vegetative and construction/demolition debris.
- Jasper County – $1,291,028 to offset the cost of removing more than 197,285 cubic yards of vegetative and construction/demolition debris.
- MDOT – $2,287,720 to offset debris removal operations in Clarke, Covington, Davis, Jasper, Jefferson Davis, Jones, Lawrence, and Walthall counties.
FEMA Public Assistant Grants provide supplemental disaster assistance to state, local and tribal governments, and certain types of private, nonprofit organizations for debris removal, emergency protective measures, and the repair, replacement, or restoration of disaster-damaged, publicly owned facilities.
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Release from Senators Roger Wicker and Cindy Hyde-Smith.
