Gov. Reynolds Requests Expedited Presidential Disaster Declaration for Pottawattamie County
Posted by: Public Relations
Pottawattamie County, Iowa – Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds has requested an expedited Presidential Disaster Declaration for nine Iowa counties, including Pottawattamie County, following the severe weather event on April 26th.
The request comes after several areas of Iowa sustained significant damage. The assessment process for destruction in Pottawattamie County is ongoing and officials expect estimates to change over the coming weeks. The process includes working with engineers to evaluate the structural integrity of buildings still standing.
Current assessments include some level of damage experienced by owners of 300 homes and businesses in the county. 76 properties have been assessed as destroyed, and 49 others have experienced major damage. Early projections estimate residential & commercial structure losses of $14,683,813.
The governor requested funding under the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Individual Assistance Program and the activation of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Disaster Loan Program for Clarke, Crawford, Harrison, Mills, Polk, Pottawattamie, Ringgold, Shelby, and Union Counties.
Funding under the FEMA Individual Assistance Program provides disaster-affected homeowners, renters, and businesses access to programs and services to maximize recovery, including assistance with housing, personal property replacement, medical expenses, and legal services.
The SBA Disaster Loan Program provides homeowners, renters, businesses, and most nonprofit organizations in the affected counties whose property was damaged or destroyed by this disaster, the ability to apply for low-interest disaster loans from the SBA.
With the governor’s request for a Presidential Disaster Declaration, Pottawattamie County officials are emphasizing the importance of residential and business property owners submitting their damages to the Pottawattamie County Emergency Management website. The reports provide vital information that support the request for federal assistance to homeowners and business owners. The damage reporting portal can be accessed at pcema-ia.org.
The letter from the governor can be read in its entirety here.
About Pottawattamie County Emergency Management: Emergency management protects communities by coordinating and integrating all activities necessary to build, sustain, and improve the capability to mitigate against, prepare for, respond to, and recover from threatened or actual natural disasters, acts of terrorism, or other man-made disasters. For more information, visit pcema-ia-org.
