Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Emergency Declaration topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Geary County declares local emergency after storms to seek FEMA aid
Summary
Geary County commissioners authorized a local emergency declaration after wind and heavy rain damaged roads, trees and county buildings; Emergency Management said the declaration is needed to compile damage totals and pursue FEMA reimbursement (about 75%).
Geary County commissioners voted to authorize a local emergency declaration after recent severe storms, a step the county’s Emergency Management director said is required to seek federal disaster reimbursement.
Gary Burgess, Geary County Emergency Management Director, told the commission that parts of Junction City sustained wind damage and areas around Rock Springs received four to six inches of rain in a single event. “I’d like to go ahead and ask for a declaration of local emergency declaration,” Burgess said, explaining the state asked the county to assemble damage figures so the county can pursue FEMA reimbursement.
Why it matters: a local declaration starts the county’s formal damage-assessment process and allows state and federal agencies to consider Geary County for public assistance funds. Burgess said the county expects to seek FEMA reimbursement at the standard public-assistance rate (about 75%), and county shops are checking roads, bridges and culverts to document damage.
Commission action and next steps: a commissioner moved and a second supported the motion to authorize the declaration; the motion carried on an oral vote. Staff said they are compiling a damage assessment that will be provided to the state, which is coordinating the FEMA request. The county will continue cataloguing roadway damage, roof and fence repairs, and debris loads to support the reimbursement application.
Funding and costs: the county reported specific damage items in administrative remarks (for example, $425 in fence repairs at the courthouse and hundreds of debris loads delivered to the landfill), and staff said they are tracking those and other costs for the damage-assessment report to FEMA.
The meeting record shows the commission also approved overtime for employees assisting with storm cleanup so crews can expedite debris removal and roadway repairs. The county did not provide a final total cost at the meeting; staff said damage figures are still being compiled for the formal assessment.
