FEMA Obligates Nearly $2.8 Million to West, Texas Independent School District for Temporary Classrooms and Administrative Buildings

DENTON, Texas – A grant totaling nearly $2.8 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will help the West Independent School District (West ISD) move forward after the April 17 fertilizer plant explosion, FEMA has announced.

After the April explosion, three of the four district campuses were no longer operational. West ISD relocated most students to temporary classrooms in nearby Waco, Texas to finish the school year.

With concerns over families returning to the community, school officials have been anxious to keep students in the City of West to attend the upcoming school year.

FEMA’s nearly $2.8 million federal grant to West ISD for Emergency Protective Measures includes funds to provide secure temporary classrooms and administrative buildings to replace those destroyed or damaged as a result of the explosion.

“Getting students back to normal schedules and attending school in their own community is an important part of the recovery,” said FEMA’s Federal Coordinating Officer Kevin L. Hannes. “These funds will help the district recover costs for adding the temporary facilities.”

The FEMA grant will pay the federal share of the eligible costs for the work. Under a cost-sharing formula, FEMA reimburses the state for 75 percent of the total costs, while the applicant covers the remaining 25 percent. The award is authorized under the current Emergency Declaration which provides reimbursements to the City of West and McLennan County for emergency protective measures and debris removal.
                                                                                                 

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