FEMA Surveys October Storm Damage

Jay Barrett/KMXT

Representatives from the Federal Emergency Management Agency are in Kodiak this week examining the aftermath of the big storm that battered the city in October, and estimating how much money it will cost to make permanent repairs. KMXT’s Jay Barrett has more.

In the wake of the big October storm, the Kodiak Island Borough, State of Alaska and ultimately President Barak Obama declared the city a disaster area eligible for FEMA funding. Jack Heesch is an external affairs officer for FEMA, based in Anchorage. He said there are five agencies that have applied for FEMA assistance: the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, the Kodiak Island Borough, Kodiak Electric Association, and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game in conjunction with the Kodiak Regional Aquaculture Association.

The first step FEMA made when it arrived over the weekend was to meet with the affected agencies:

— (FEMA 1 : 36 sec "It’s at that point that … different projects, if you will.")

After the meetings and surveys the FEMA team will come up with the scope of work that needs to be done:

— (FEMA 2 41 sec "And in some cases … what it’s going to take to get it repaired.")

Heesch said the federal government will pay for 75-percent of the costs of the repairs, while the state of Alaska will pick up the other 25-percent. He said some states do not pick up any of the remaining costs, leaving it to the local governments affected.

— (FEMA 3 57 sec "If not for that assistance … more than just a few bucks a head.")

Some areas, like the mountainside along Women’s Bay, regularly experience landslides, and FEMA will see if permanent mitigation is needed to prevent such occurrences from repeating:

— (FEMA 4 40 sec "They’ll take a serious look … permanent fixes could be, yeah.")

The damage to the Kodiak Regional Aquaculture hatcheries was apparently limited to its buildings.

— (FEMA 5 28 sec "The good news is … so that’s a good thing."

Bear Valley Golf Course suffered heavy damage on holes one and two during the storm, and the layout will have to be changed once it reopens. However since the course is owned by the Coast Guard, repairs to it are not eligible for FEMA assistance.

I’m Jay Barrett.

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