FEMA assessing damage to public buildings, infrastructure in St. Louis
ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) -The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is examining public assets such as recreation centers, police stations, and firehouses impacted by the May 16 tornado.
FEMA had previously visited the damage zone last week at the request of Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe to assess damage to private properties.
Ryan Lowry-Lee, a public affairs specialist with FEMA, explained that the information FEMA collected would go to the state as part of its request for federal help through a disaster declaration.
Ultimately it will fall to the White House to determine whether to issue a disaster declaration, allowing FEMA to distribute resources to cover uninsured losses from the storm.
“With the severity of the damage, it was really important to have those individual assessment teams last week so the governor can request assistance as soon as possible,” he said. “Now we’re back on the public assistance side.”
Continuing Coverage
The public buildings FEMA visited on Wednesday included several in Forest Park, the O’Fallon Recreation Center, Tandy Community Center and Wohl Recreation Center, as well as several other city-owned buildings.
“We’re working as quickly as possible to get the state the information they need for a disaster declaration request,” Lowry-Lee said.
The National Guard has also deployed to St. Louis, setting up several sites for tree debris collection and transfer. A spokesperson declined formal media interviews, but said that approximately 40 guardsmen were preparing the sites today and would soon be accepting materials at the sites.
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