FEMA Teams to Visit Westport Monday

Governor M. Jodi Rell announced today that state and federal emergency management officials will meet in Hartford on Monday to begin conducting joint damage assessments from the severe storms that battered the state March 13-14.

After the Hartford meeting, a team will trek to Westport to meet with local emergency management officials at 10:30 a.m., unless traffic causes delays, said a state spokesman.

If Connecticut meets the federal thresholds of at least $4.39 million in damages statewide and at least $2.85 million in damages in Fairfield County, the state will qualify for federal disaster assistance and Rell can request a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration. Costs covered by insurance will be deducted from damage estimates.

In Westport alone, damage estimates have totaled $1.1 million, according to First Selectman Gordon Joseloff. State surveys have estimated damage across the state to tally $7 million.

If a Presidential Declaration is issued, the state and certain counties will be eligible for "Public Assistance" for uninsured expenses as a result of a major disaster. Counties may also be eligible for "Individual Assistance" (IA), which provides financial assistance to eligible individuals and households who, as a direct result of a major disaster, have uninsured losses.

"There is little doubt in my mind that FEMA will see what I saw: a region battered by a storm more severe than any in recent memory," Rell said in a news release. "Thousands of trees were damaged or uprooted, hundreds of homes and cars were damaged and nearly 100,000 people were left without power – some for as long as six days after the storm. Communities from across the area have already reported significant costs and losses.

FEMA will be sending up to six damage assessment teams to meet state officials early Monday morning at the Emergency Operations Center in the William A. O'Neill Armory in Hartford. From there, the teams will fan out to the hardest-hit areas – mostly in Fairfield County.  In addition to Westport, towns likely to be visited include, Bridgeport, Darien, Fairfield, Greenwich, New Canaan,  Norwalk, Stamford, Stratford and West Haven.

The U.S. Small Business Administration will also be part of the IA teams to assess damages to residences and businesses. The SBA has a low-interest loan program that may become available.