The City of Ashland recently received payments totaling $142,752 from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Commonwealth of Kentucky Division of Emergency Management, as reimbursement for expenses that occurred as a result of serious winter storms in February and March 2015.
Boyd County was one of seventeen counties within the Commonwealth that was eligible for reimbursement from both storms. The City submitted detailed applications for reimbursement of expenses that included costs for employee overtime hours, street repair, floodwall pumping, water line repairs, and the use of snow plows, road salt, and various other pieces of equipment required to manage the emergency.
The two winter storms (February 15-22, 2015 and March 3-9, 2015) affected the region so severely that President Barack Obama declared them as ‘Major Disasters’, thereby availing the area of federal disaster aid through the Public Assistance Program (CFDA 97.036), to supplement commonwealth and local recovery efforts in the area.
The program pays for 75% of the approved costs, with an additional 12% covered by the state, and 13% covered by the local entity. The $142,752 that the City received is the combined amount of the federal and state portions of the reimbursements.
As part of the application for disaster aid, the City of Ashland submitted a total of $243,900 of expenses for reimbursement, over 78% of which was ultimately approved by FEMA. The largest portion of expenses that were ultimately not included as part of the reimbursement dealt with floodwall pumping, which was required because of the high water level of the Ohio River during and immediately following the storms.
“Last winter brought some of the most severe winter storms in this region’s recent history. We are heading into another winter season that some predict will be equally severe, but regardless of future forecasts, City staff is deeply committed to clean the roads and make it safe for our citizens to travel, even in the most difficult of circumstances,” said Ashland City Manager Ben Bitter.
“This payment shows the dedicated efforts of our staff to use taxpayer resources wisely and efficiently. Special thanks are due to Public Works Director Marion Russell, Engineering and Utilities Director Ryan Eastwood, and Finance Director Tony Grubb and their staff, for their work in compiling and submitting the rigorous applications that made this reimbursement a reality. Brent Webster and his staff from Boyd County Emergency Management were also a vital player in recovering these funds,” added Bitter.
The City of Ashland maintains over 400 lane miles of roads, and often plows these multiple times a day during winter storm events. Plowing is on a set priority-based schedule, separated into five geographically-based routes.
The reimbursement applications covered the use of approximately 1.2 million pounds of salt, 1200 hours of overtime, 14 days of pumping at the floodwall, and over $55,000 for street and hillside repairs caused by a road slip that occurred as a result of the storm.
(story provided by the City of Ashland)
