Public Assistance and Hazard Mitigation Briefing Scheduled for Somerset County

HARRISBURG, Pa. — A Public Assistance briefing is scheduled for Somerset County, according to the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Somerset County, 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, Jan. 24 

Somerset County Department of Emergency Services

100 E. Union St.

Somerset, PA 15501

At the briefing, officials from state and local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations will receive information about applying for federal assistance to recover from Hurricane Sandy during the period from October 26 to November 8, 2012.  

FEMA manages the Public Assistance program, approves grants and provides technical assistance to the Commonwealth and applicants. The Commonwealth educates potential applicants, works with FEMA to manage the program and is responsible for implementing and monitoring the grants awarded under the program. Local officials are responsible for identifying damage, providing information necessary for FEMA to approve grants and managing each project funded under the program.

Federal funding is also available through the PA program on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures in all counties of the Commonwealth.

Frequently asked questions about the Public Assistance process are included online at www.FEMA.gov.

FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards. FEMA Region III’s jurisdiction includes Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia.  Stay informed of FEMA’s activities online: videos and podcasts are available at http://www.fema.gov/medialibrary and www.youtube.com/fema. Follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/femaregion3.

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