FEMA Colorado Housing Mission Comes to a Close

DENVER – The FEMA temporary housing mission serving Colorado came to a close March 14, 2015.  In the aftermath of the 2013 Colorado flooding, FEMA brought in more than 50 manufactured homes to areas where a severe housing shortage was identified. In the past month, the final few remaining households have been moving out of the FEMA units.

“This is yet another sign of the recovery in Colorado,” said FEMA Region VIII Administrator Sharon Loper. “The FEMA housing mission provided a needed temporary housing resource for individuals and families in areas where the housing stock was depleted following the devastating floods.”

To address the housing needs of the Colorado flood survivors, FEMA placed housing units at manufactured home parks in Boulder, Larimer and Weld counties.  The first units were placed in November 2013.  The FEMA housing mission is designed to provide lodging for individuals and families while repairs are made to their disaster-damaged property or they seek alternative rental housing.

The diligent efforts of FEMA housing staff and the state’s Disaster Case Management caseworkers have assisted residents in finding available rental housing and/or coordinating additional funding sources for the completion of repairs to their homes. As part of the housing program, FEMA housing specialists met frequently with residents to assist them in their search for permanent housing.  The Colorado Division of Housing and numerous volunteer and local agencies also have provided critical support to these households. 

In addition to managing the temporary housing program, FEMA has provided more than
$56 million to Colorado households to make repairs to flood damaged properties or to pay rent while unable to live in a flood-damaged home.  Statewide, FEMA has provided more than $380 million in disaster assistance to individuals and governmental jurisdictions as a result of 2013 flooding.

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.

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FEMA Colorado Housing Mission Comes to a Close

Rebuilding stronger and better

 

DENVER — Rebuilding after a disaster can present opportunities as well as challenges.

The challenges include getting the job done quickly and efficiently. The opportunities involve rebuilding stronger and better.

When it comes to repairing and rebuilding infrastructure damaged in last September’s floods, FEMA’s Stafford Act Section 406 can provide mitigation funds for risk-reduction improvements to roads, waterways, bridges, dams, buildings and other public structures already eligible for Public Assistance reimbursement.

Mitigation projects are being undertaken throughout the 18 Colorado counties designated eligible for FEMA Public Assistance, particularly in Boulder, Larimer and Weld counties. The goal is to reduce risk, reduce damages, and reduce the threat to life and property from future flooding events.

As Coloradans continue recovery efforts, nearly 200 Public Assistance repair projects now include some form of Section 406 mitigation. Many of these projects involve “armoring,” or shoring up, stream banks scraped and weakened by the flooding. Workers are also elevating electrical equipment out of harm’s way in public buildings and in the field, and doing what they can to strengthen piers and other supports under bridges.

FEMA typically reimburses at least 75 percent of eligible costs for projects that return infrastructure to its pre-disaster condition. Under certain circumstances, FEMA can also fund Section 406 mitigation measures as long the project is cost effective.

Most types of mitigation projects in this disaster recovery can be considered cost-effective and eligible for funding if they are performed on disaster-damaged infrastructure and reduce the potential for damages from similar events in the future.

Cost-effectiveness, along with other conditions for eligibility, are determined on a case-by-case basis. Applicants for 406 mitigation should consult with their FEMA Public Assistance Coordinator for more detailed information and guidance.

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Rebuilding stronger and better

Colorado Flooding: Two Months Later

DENVER – In the two months since heavy rains brought flooding, Colorado survivors have received more than $117.4 million in state and federal assistance and low-interest loans and an additional $35.1 million in FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) payouts.

To date, more than $52.7 million in Individual Assistance (IA) grants has helped more than 15,000 Colorado households find safe, functional and sanitary rental units or make repairs to primary homes and cover other disaster-related expenses, such as medical needs or personal property loss. Nearly $48.7 million of IA grants have been issued in housing assistance and $4 million in other needs assistance, such as medical or personal property loss. Flood survivors have also received disaster unemployment assistance and disaster legal services.

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has approved $64.7 million in disaster loans to Colorado homeowners, renters, businesses of all sizes and private nonprofit organizations. Of that amount, $54.3 million was in loans to repair and rebuild homes and $10.4 million in business and economic injury loans. Approved loan totals in some of the impacted areas are currently $40 million in Boulder County, $8.9 million in Larimer County and $7.7 million in Weld County.

In addition:

  • FEMA housing inspectors in the field have looked at more than 24,000 properties in the 11 designated counties for Individual Assistance.
  • In coordination with the State and local officials, FEMA Disaster Survivor Assistance specialists have canvassed Colorado neighborhoods, helping 37,180 survivors connect with recovery services. Survivors have talked to local, state, nonprofit, nongovernmental and FEMA specialists at the Disaster Recovery Centers (DRCs). At the DRCs, in the field and on the phone, FEMA provides information in Spanish and many other languages.
  • More than 50 national, state and local voluntary and faith-based organizations have spent 269,330 hours helping people as they recover from the flooding. The 27,655 volunteers are providing donations, volunteer management, home repair, child care, pet care, counseling services and removal of muck and mold from homes.
  • In the 18 counties designated for Public Assistance, 190 Applicant Kickoff Meetings have been conducted and so far FEMA has obligated $9,451,743 for eligible projects for debris removal, emergency protective measures and the repair of critical public-owned infrastructure.
  • FEMA and the State’s Private Sector team has contacted organization leaders from 33 Chambers of Commerce, six Economic Development Centers and 38 colleges and universities to share disaster assistance information.
  • The Federal Disaster Recovery Coordination group is coordinating disaster recovery across the entire federal family of agencies, facilitating long-term relationships among agencies, identifying technical expertise and funding opportunities; suggesting strategies for addressing specific needs, and generally encouraging a whole community approach to disaster recovery.
    • Coordinating agencies represented in FDRC include U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and U.S. Department of Commerce.
  • Speakers Bureau has received 71 requests from local officials throughout the affected area and 363 State/FEMA specialists and SBA representatives have spoken at town hall meetings and other venues. More than 7,600 attendees received information about FEMA’s IA program, Hazard Mitigation, flood insurance and SBA.
  • Mitigation specialists have counseled 15,250 survivors during outreach efforts at area hardware stores and more than 4,300 survivors at Disaster Recovery Centers in Colorado.
  • In the first 60 days of the Colorado flooding disaster, there have been 96,375 total page views on the disaster web page, fema.gov/disaster/4145, or an average of 1,606 daily. More than 500 tweets in the last 60 days were posted on the FEMA Region 8 Twitter feed, an average of eight daily tweets. The R8 Twitter feed has increased its followers to 9,000, an increase of nearly 600 new followers in the past 60 days.
  • At the request of the State, the 11 counties with FEMA IA designations are Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Clear Creek, El Paso, Fremont, Jefferson, Larimer, Logan, Morgan and Weld.
  • At the request of the State, the 18 counties with FEMA Public Assistance (PA) designations are Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Clear Creek, Crowley, Denver, El Paso, Fremont, Gilpin, Jefferson, Lake, Larimer, Lincoln, Logan, Morgan, Sedgwick, Washington and Weld.

County-By-County Breakdown of State and Federal Grants

Adams County

Housing Assistance:

$1,017,068

 

Other Needs Assistance:

$118,156

 

Total State/FEMA Assistance:

$1,135,224

 

 

 

Arapahoe County

Housing Assistance:

$2,928,379

 

Other Needs Assistance:

$255,331

 

Total State/FEMA Assistance:

$3,183,710

 

 

 

Boulder County

Housing Assistance:

$28,419,729

 

Other Needs Assistance:

$1,820,947

 

Total State/FEMA Assistance:

$30,240,676

 

 

 

Clear Creek County

Housing Assistance:

$190,128

 

Other Needs Assistance:

$2,426

 

Total State/FEMA Assistance:

$192,554

 

 

 

El Paso County

Housing Assistance:

$1,338,680

 

Other Needs Assistance:

$142,673

 

Total State/FEMA Assistance:

$1,481,353

 

 

 

Fremont County

Housing Assistance:

$43,859

 

Other Needs Assistance:

$1,950

 

Total State/FEMA Assistance:

$45,809

 

 

 

Jefferson County

Housing Assistance:

$1,378,621

 

Other Needs Assistance:

$26,793

 

Total State/FEMA Assistance:

$1,405,414

 

 

 

Larimer County

Housing Assistance:

$4,816,065

 

Other Needs Assistance:

$267,884

 

Total State/FEMA Assistance:

$5,083,949

 

 

 

Logan County

Housing Assistance:

$474,194

 

Other Needs Assistance:

$42,515

 

Total State/FEMA Assistance:

$516,709

 

 

 

Morgan County

Housing Assistance:

$69,450

 

Other Needs Assistance:

$5,037

 

Total State/FEMA Assistance:

$74,487

 

 

 

Weld County

Housing Assistance:

$8,027,426

 

Other Needs Assistance:

$1,338,890

 

Total State/FEMA Assistance:

$9,366,315

Register with FEMA by phone, 800-621-3362, from 5 a.m. to 8 p.m., MST, seven days a week.  Multilingual phone operators are available on the FEMA helpline. Choose Option 2 for Spanish and Option 3 for other languages. People who have a speech disability or are deaf or hard of hearing may call (TTY) 800-462-7585; users of 711 or Video Relay Service can call 800-621-3362.

Register online: DisasterAssistance.gov. Register by Web-enabled device, tablet or smartphone: type m.fema.gov in the browser.

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Colorado Flooding: Two Months Later

Added Counties Now Eligible for FEMA Individual and Public Assistance

DENVER – Residents of Fremont and Morgan counties whose homes were damaged in the September floods are now eligible for Individual Assistance from FEMA.

Also, eight additional counties are now eligible for FEMA Public Assistance: Arapahoe, Crowley, Denver, Fremont, Gilpin, Lake, Lincoln and Sedgwick. The eight new counties receive public assistance in all categories A-G.

Individual Assistance

Individual Assistance was extended to Fremont and Morgan counties after damage assessments were completed by officials from the Colorado Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management and FEMA.

Homeowners, renters and business owners in the designated counties who sustained damage as a result of the severe storms, flooding, landslides and mudslides that began on Sept. 11, 2013, may apply for federal disaster assistance.

The two additional counties bring the number of Colorado counties eligible for individual assistance to 11.  The nine previously-designated counties are Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Clear Creek, El Paso, Jefferson, Larimer, Logan and Weld.

Public Assistance

The eight added counties are now eligible for all seven categories of Public Assistance.

Categories A and B cover debris removal and emergency protective measures while categories C through G include more permanent work on infrastructure, such as roads, bridges, public buildings and contents, as well as water facilities, public utilities and parks.

Public Assistance provides cost sharing grants with FEMA paying 75 percent of repair costs.

The eight additional counties bring the number of Colorado counties eligible for Public Assistance to 18.  The 10 previously-designated counties are Adams, Boulder, Clear Creek, El Paso, Jefferson, Larimer, Logan, Morgan, Washington and Weld.

To Register:

For any questions, contact FEMA by phone, 800-621-3362, from 5 a.m. to 8 p.m., MDT, seven days a week.  Multilingual phone operators are available on the FEMA Helpline. Choose Option 2 for Spanish and Option 3 for other languages. People who have a speech disability or are deaf or hard of hearing may call (TTY) 800-462-7585; users of 711 or Video Relay Service can call 800-621-3362.

Register online:  DisasterAssistance.gov or by Web-enabled device, tablet or smartphone: type m.fema.gov in the browser.                                                    

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Added Counties Now Eligible for FEMA Individual and Public Assistance