FEMA Obligates $1.2 Million to St. John Parish School Board for Hurricane Isaac Emergency Measures

BATON ROUGE, La. – The St. John Parish School Board will receive a $1.2 million federal grant to reimburse transportation costs it incurred because of Hurricane Isaac, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) said Thursday.

Between Aug. 26 and Sept. 10, Hurricane Isaac produced high winds, rain and flooding throughout the state. Two public schools in St. John Parish sustained flooding serious enough to close their doors temporarily and students from those schools had to be bused to other locations. The FEMA Public Assistance grant, totaling $1,234,063, helps reimburse the school board for those transportation costs.

“The St. John School Board acted quickly to make sure students remained safe and continued their educations after the storm,” said Federal Coordinating Officer Gerard M. Stolar of FEMA. “Reimbursement for those transportation-related expenses supports the schools’ recovery efforts.”

The newly obligated funds are a portion of the $222 million in total Public Assistance recovery dollars approved for the state since the Aug. 29, 2012, disaster declaration.

Once FEMA reimburses the state of Louisiana it is the state’s responsibility to manage the funds, which includes making disbursements to local jurisdictions and organizations that incurred costs.

For more information on Louisiana disaster recovery, click www.fema.gov/disaster/4080 or www.gohsep.la.gov. You can follow FEMA on Twitter at www.twitter.com/femaregion6 or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/FEMA. Also visit our blog at www.fema.gov/blog.