Five months after Hurricane Ike smashed into the upper Texas Gulf Coast, recovery efforts are still underway. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the State of Texas, and other federal and local entities continue to work together to repair the massive destruction the storm left in its wake.

This arduous undertaking is not cheap. The current tally for federal and state assistance to help Texans recover from Hurricane Ike has surpassed $1.5 billion. In conjunction with the Texas Governor's Division of Emergency Management, FEMA has provided a summary of assistance approved as of February 5, 2009:

Nearly $488 million has been approved for Texans' recovery efforts. This allotment will be used for disaster assistance for housing, disaster-related needs, and disaster unemployment assistance. In addition, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has approved more than $552 million in low-interest disaster loans for homeowners, renters, and businesses of all sizes. An overview of other recovery funding is listed below:

?More than $77 million has been billed for short-term, transitional sheltering in hotels/motels for eligible applicants. Some 3,600 eligible individuals and families are still participating in the program.

?To date, more than $394 million in public assistance funding has been obligated and sent to the state of Texas for local public infrastructure repair and debris removal costs.

?FEMA has provided temporary manufactured housing for more than 3,400 applicants or 94 percent of the 3,600 applicants eligible for direct housing assistance.

?Nearly 6,000 Texans are in temporary housing under the U. S. Disaster Housing Assistance Program, which is funded by FEMA and administered by the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

?More than 20 million cubic yards or 94 percent of eligible debris has been cleared from disaster-affected counties.

?There are nine FEMA/State Disaster Recovery Centers open in affected counties, offering face-to-face assistance. Nearly 152,000 visits have been made to the centers.

Source: www.fema.gov

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Ike Update: Recovery Assistance Surpasses $1.5 Billion

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