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EMA updates commission on Helene recovery; county authorizes state grants and bond-related reimbursements
Summary
The EMA director reported 43 projects (12 obligated) tied to Helene recovery, announced a new county emergency app and planned weather-station locations, and commissioners approved state grant contracts including $398,557 for bond administration and a $5,497,650 Helene interest-payment grant.
The Carter County Emergency Management Agency updated commissioners on Helene recovery work and the county’s grant awards during the Nov. 17 regular session.
EMA Director Cathy Umrichin told the board the county has 43 projects in its Helene recovery portfolio, of which 12 are obligated. She said staff are steering longer-term resident recovery cases to long-term assistance and emphasized rapid public communication. "We will be getting a press release promo kit together. The app is live on Apple Store and then the Play Store," Umrichin said, urging commissioners to download the "Elizabethton Carter County EMA" app.
Umrichin also said each county is slated to receive one weather station — the site requirement is about a 30-by-30 piece of property — and that the site would be accessible to Emergency Management, TEMA and the public, with the National Weather Service using the data.
Following the update, the commission approved grant actions reported by the Financial Management Committee: a Grant Contract between the State of Tennessee (TEMA) and Carter County for Governor’s Response and Recovery Fund for Bond Administration Fees in the amount of $398,557, and a separate TEMA grant for Helene Interest Payment reimbursements totaling $5,497,650. Both measures passed by recorded vote and were described in attached grant contracts provided to the commission.
Financial documents in the meeting packet and attached exhibits show the county’s emergency-spend report, loan proceeds for road work, and invoicing for debris removal and temporary-bridge projects. Staff repeatedly noted that many repairs will be reimbursed at federal and state cost-share rates and that final reimbursement timing depends on third-party review.
