Disaster recovery going strong 10 months after flooding

 

Almost 10 months ago, heavy rains brought flooding, landslides and mudslides to several counties along Colorado’s Front Range. Since that time, nearly $449 million in grants, reimbursements, low-interest loans and insurance payments to individuals, businesses and communities has been approved by the State of Colorado, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the National Flood Insurance Program and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).

In all, Individual Assistance was extended to 11 counties, while 18 counties were eligible for Public Assistance. The counties receiving IA were Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Clear Creek, El Paso, Fremont, Jefferson, Larimer, Logan, Morgan and Weld. The counties designated for PA were Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Clear Creek, Crowley, Denver, El Paso, Fremont, Gilpin, Jefferson, Lake, Larimer, Lincoln, Logan, Morgan, Sedgwick, Washington and Weld.

Ten months later, FEMA and the Federal Disaster Recovery Coordinator continue to work closely with the Colorado Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management and Colorado Recovery Office. Going forward, the FDRC will continue to manage the coordination of recovery programs with other federal agencies as well as on-going FEMA recovery programs.

A few milestones from the Colorado flood disaster:

• One month after the disaster, more than $60 million dollars was in the hands of survivors to help with the cleanup and rebuilding of their homes and lives. One hundred days after the disaster, more than $204 million was helping survivors recover.

• FEMA Disaster Survivor Assistance teams canvassed hundreds of neighborhoods, visiting more than 62,000 homes and 2,741 businesses to provide information on a vast array of services and resources available to eligible applicants and made follow-up contacts in hundreds of cases.

• More than 21,500 survivors were able to visit 26 State/federal Disaster Recovery Centers to get one-on-one briefings on available assistance, low-interest loans and other information.

• Transitional Sheltering Assistance was activated Sept. 22 to house applicants in 177 hotels. That program closed Dec. 15 after sheltering a total of 1,067 households. Following TSA, the housing mission provided 54 Manufactured Housing Units to house 47 households. Twenty-three households have vacated 27 units since the onset of the program.

• Nearly 54 percent of Public Assistance permanent repair work and more than 65 percent of large (more than $67,500) Public Assistance projects contain mitigation measures to lessen the impact of similar disasters on publicly owned infrastructure.

• Public Assistance worked closely with state and county officials not only to reimburse for repairs or replacement of infrastructure, but also to remove hazards from streams. PA also implemented new Alternative Procedures (PAAP) pilot program created by the Sandy Recovery and Improvement Act to streamline the reimbursement process for permanent repairs to or replacement of disaster-damaged infrastructure.

Federal assistance and obligations by county:

Adams

Individual Assistance

Housing Assistance: $1,111,231

Other Needs Assistance: $136,457

Total IA Assistance: $1,247,688

Small Business Administration Assistance:

Homeowner Loans: $1,634,200

Business Loans: $80,500

Total SBA Assistance: $1,714,700

Public Assistance: $6,092,859

Arapahoe

Individual Assistance

Housing Assistance: $3,279,187

Other Needs Assistance: $295,250

Total IA Assistance: $3,574,437

Small Business Administration Assistance

Homeowner Loans: $3,769,300

Business Loans: $252,800

Total SBA Assistance: $4,022,100

Public Assistance: $2,205,031

Boulder

Individual Assistance

Housing Assistance: $32,868,721

Other Needs Assistance: $2,307,482

Total IA Assistance: $35,176,203

Small Business Administration Assistance

Homeowner Loans: $50,300,100

Business Loans: $14,430,600

Total SBA Assistance: $64,730,700

Public Assistance: $82,041,560

Clear Creek

Individual Assistance

Housing Assistance: $244,111

Other Needs Assistance: $2,674

Total IA Assistance: $246,785

Small Business Administration Assistance

Homeowner Loans: $142,200

Business Loans: $29,600

Total SBA Assistance: $171,800

Public Assistance: $1,134,005

Crowley

Public Assistance: $239,576

Denver

Public Assistance: $2,405,472

El Paso

Individual Assistance

Housing Assistance: $1,578,069

Other Needs Assistance: $194,261

Total IA Assistance: $1,772,330

Small Business Administration Assistance

Homeowner Loans: $1,785.900

Business Loans: $370,100

Total SBA Assistance: $2,156,000

Public Assistance: $7,186,433

Fremont

Individual Assistance

Housing Assistance: $59,352

Other Needs Assistance: $1,950

Total IA Assistance: $61,302

Small Business Administration Assistance

Homeowner Loans: $45,400

Total SBA Assistance: $45,400

Public Assistance: $799,341

Gilpin

Public Assistance: $448,147

Jefferson

Individual Assistance

Housing Assistance: $38,442

Other Needs Assistance: $1,561,089

Total IA Assistance: $1,599,531

Small Business Administration Assistance

Homeowner Loans: $2,662,600

Business Loans: $450,000

Total SBA Assistance: $3,112,600

Public Assistance: $7,692,622

Lake

Public Assistance: $156,570

Larimer

Individual Assistance

Housing Assistance: $6,547,742

Other Needs Assistance: $396,376

Total IA Assistance: $6,944,118

Small Business Administration Assistance

Homeowner Loans: $9,053,400

Business Loans: $11,265,000

Total SBA Assistance: $20,318,400

Public Assistance: $49,302,684

Lincoln

Public Assistance: $96,737

Logan

Individual Assistance

Housing Assistance: $491,539

Other Needs Assistance: $42,875

Total IA Assistance: $534,414

Small Business Administration Assistance

Homeowner Loans: $1,312,100

Business Loans: $179,200

Total SBA Assistance: $1,491,300

Public Assistance: $590,548

Morgan

Individual Assistance

Housing Assistance: $82,381

Other Needs Assistance: $8,292

Total IA Assistance: $90,673

Small Business Administration Assistance

Homeowner Loans: $65,400

Total SBA Assistance: $65,400

Public Assistance: $3,403,673

Sedgwick

Public Assistance: $20,618

Washington

Public Assistance: $277,783

Weld

Individual Assistance

Housing Assistance: $8,676,604

Other Needs Assistance: $1,502,403

Total IA Assistance: $10,179,007

Small Business Administration Assistance

Homeowner Loans: $9,541,600

Business Loans: $1,179,400

Total SBA Assistance: $10,721,000

Public Assistance: $17,918,448

Statewide Agencies

Public Assistance: $31,220,892