Feds may offer aid for windstorm repair work

Published 6:00 am Saturday, December 23, 2006

Now that the latest windstorm has blown through, property and business owners are beginning to pick up the pieces.

Record-breaking strong winds during the recent storm brought down trees on homes and cars all over the region.

Island County officials and insurance adjusters are busy assessing the damage.

Leslie Wheeler of the State Farm office in Freeland said they have been busy this week.

“We are getting a fair amount of calls. So far we’ve had about a dozen calls for damage related to the windstorm,” Wheeler said.

Wheeler said she hasn’t heard of any homes that were uninhabitable, mostly just some damaged roofs and a few cars.

However, across town, Jim Porter said his office has not received many calls.

Porter, owner of Porter Insurance offices in Freeland, Coupeville and Anacortes, said his three offices have not received many claims yet.

“It’s a lot quieter than I thought it would be. I guess it wasn’t our turn this time,” Porter said Thursday.

“We’ve had a few minor claims of damage to cars, but no major stuff,” he said. “That’s good news for our clients and our business.”

For property and business owners who are uninsured, there may be help from the Federal Emergency Management Office or the Small Business Administration.

wThat depends, however, if the entire region qualifies for disaster relief based on the amount of property damage.

Island County Emergency Services director Mike Simmons is encouraging homeowners and business owners without insurance to report any storm damage to the county.

“Federal disaster assistance only covers uninsured losses,” he said.

At the county level, Simmons is busy collecting damage reports from other county offices and private property and business owners. So far, the amount of damage hasn’t hit the level yet that would trigger federal aid.

“It doesn’t look like we’ve had enough uninsured property damage in this county to help qualify for aid. Power outages are not considered in damages,” Simmons said.

“However, all the damage reports will be forwarded to the state, which will then conduct a formal damage assessment of the region,” Simmons said.

“Once all the damage reports are in, the county will report the damage to the governor who can request federal disaster aid from FEMA. The president can then declare the state or several counties a disaster area,” he explained. “To get federal assistance, damage must be very serious and widespread affecting a large number of people.”

The process is expected to take up to couple of weeks or more.

Simmons said if businesses do not qualify for FEMA aid, the Small Business Administration may offer an alternative source of aid.

“The SBA can declare a disaster, at the request of the governor. If that happens, SBA can provide disaster loans to homeowners, renters, and small businesses much the way they would do if the president declared a major disaster,” Simmons said.

However, to qualify for the program, Washington state must be able to clearly show that 25 homes and or businesses, in any county or political subdivision, have uninsured losses exceeding 40 percent of the estimated fair replacement value or pre-disaster fair market value, whichever is lower.

South End homeowners and business owners can report damages – even if they are insured – to their local emergency management office so they can be combined with other reports and forwarded to the state for analysis.

Report damages to the Island County Department of Emergency Management from South Whidbey by calling 321-5113, ext. 7370 or visit the county Website at www.islandcounty.net.

A form for reporting residential damage is on the emergency services Web page at the “Reporting Damage” link.

If you do not have Internet access, the same form can be obtained at the the Department of Emergency Services office in Coupeville.