Williamson County details storm damage, urges volunteers to register for FEMA match

Williamson County officials used their February commission meeting to brief the public on response and recovery after a severe wind/tornado event that struck parts of the county earlier that week.

Mike Thompson, the county's emergency management director, summarized the scale of the damage and the response effort, saying, "Currently, we have 94 structures that were affected: 49 had what we classified as minor damage, 11 with major damage, and 34 destroyed or not repairable." Thompson described a rapid mutual-aid response from local fire departments, Tennessee Highway Patrol and state DOT crews, and said volunteer coordination and documentation would be critical to maximize federal assistance.

Thompson told commissioners and staff that if the county receives a presidential disaster declaration, public assistance typically carries a roughly 75 percent federal share and a 25 percent local/state match. "The important thing for us is in order to meet our match, we can use unpaid labor as an in kind contribution," he said, and urged volunteer teams to sign in and log hours so those hours can be converted to match dollars.

Eddie Hood, who oversees county roads and public works, described clearing and cleanup operations and identified several roads with structural or significant guardrail damage, naming South Harpeth Road, Lampard Road and Younger Creek Road among the most damaged. Hood asked residents to move storm debris to the edge of the road for pickup: "If they can get the debris to the side of the road, we will get it," he said, and warned crews would likely make multiple passes for large accumulations.

Bill Jorgensen, director of emergency dispatch (E-9-1-1), played recorded call audio and told the commission the dispatch center saw a surge of calls during the event. He said the county's recent radio and notification investments held up under stress: "We took, 85 9 1 1 calls between, 8PM and 8AM," and the county used a grant-funded high-speed notification system to contact roughly 7,000 numbers to recruit volunteers for Saturday's recovery work.

County leaders also described sheltering and donations: the Red Cross opened a shelter and housed dozens of people over several nights; on Saturday volunteers numbered at least 750 registrants, and churches and local groups provided food and clothing. Commissioners pointed residents seeking to donate goods or volunteer to the United Way's 211 hotline and to a community website, williamsonrocks.com, for updated volunteer and donation information.

Officials provided practical next steps: (1) residents should move debris to the roadside for county pickup; (2) volunteer teams must sign in and record hours to be considered as part of a FEMA match; (3) individuals who lost food stamp benefits may be eligible for short-term replacement assistance through the Tennessee Department of Human Services; and (4) the county will continue to refine damage assessments with FEMA and SBA teams on site.

Thompson warned the commission that a presidential disaster declaration was neither guaranteed nor denied; federal teams first visit the hardest-hit counties and may add counties later. "There's no guarantee we'll get it. There's no guarantee we won't get it," he said. County officials said they would continue to brief the commission and the public as damage assessments and federal determinations progress.

Contact and help: commissioners gave two contacts at the meeting for volunteer coordination and donations: Janice Boren (local volunteer coordinator) and the United Way 211 hotline for donation coordination.