The federal agency has approved more than $1 million in storm reimbursements in recent weeks for West Springfield, Wilbraham, Monson, Sturbridge, Holland and Brimfield.
Debris from the tornado-damaged area on Clark Street in Springfield sits along the side of the road where one house has yet to have any work done to it while the house next door to the right shows signs of progress. Local officials meet with FEMA and MEMA representatives Monday at the federal building for an update on the reimbursement process.SPRINGFIELD – Federal administrators fielded a volley of questions and complaints Monday from officials in tornado-damaged communities eager for storm reimbursements.
“When do we get the check?,” asked Gerald W. Hayes, the Westfield State University vice president helping to lead Springfield’s rebuilding effort.
Hayes and representatives from other Greater Springfield communities quizzed two Federal Emergency Management Agency officials at a forum organized by U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield to bolster the recovery.
Mark H. Landry, a FEMA coordinating officer, said the federal reimbursement process takes time, especially in communities like Springfield that sustained extensive building damage.
Mark Landry“This was a very Springfield-centric storm,” said Landry, adding that the city will get the largest share of the $58 million in storm relief funds distributed by FEMA.
Explaining the funding delay, Landry said Springfield has six reimbursement requests under review, and 45 awaiting fuller documentation.
T.J. Plante, the city’s finance director, said the city has repeatedly submitted requested documents, only to be told to submit more or different documents; what’s more, the city often deals with a shifting cast of FEMA employees on a single request as some are rotated to other assignments, Plante said.
Springfield expects the final cost form the July 1 tornadoes to exceed $100 million, including replacing three elementary schools and the South End Community Center.
Mayor Domenic J. Sarno said the city has already shelled out $15.9 million on tornado-related expenses, and cannot keep spending at that pace. “We need to have money coming in,” Sarno said.
The federal agency has approved more than $1 million in storm reimbursements in recent weeks for West Springfield, Wilbraham, Monson, Sturbridge, Holland and Brimfield.
Congressman Richard E. Neal opens a summit that he hosted with FEMA, Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency and local officials Monday at the Federal Building in Springfield.Officials from West Springfield and Southbridge also expressed frustration during the session, adding that the freak October snowstorm only compounded the tornado recovery.
Late in the session, Hayes asked Landry to personally shepherd Springfield’s reimbursement requests through the FEMA bureaucracy.
When Landry responded that FEMA is working closely with Springfield officials and has the city’s recovery as its goal, Hayes responded: “So I can take that as a yes?”
Landry said he will help the city.
John McGough, a FEMA emergency management specialist, said the agency is scrambling to keep up with demands created by unusually volatile weather.
“We’re playing catch up as much as anyone else; the frequency of the storms has taken us by surprise,” McGough said.
Neal said the forum was held to bring the federal government and local officials together and speed up the reimbursement process if possible.
“That’s why we’re assembled here,” Neal said.