#vasnow

The counties of Greene, Henrico, and Shenandoah and the independent cities of Fairfax and Fredericksburg are now eligible to receive federal assistance for some of their costs incurred during the Severe Winter Storms and Snowstorm occurring on January 22-23, 2016. This will allow for reimbursement for repairing infrastructure damage caused by the storms, as well as the cost of responding to them. In addition, Snow Assistance will be provided for a period of 48 hours.

On March 7, 2016 President Obama issued a major disaster declaration for the Commonwealth of Virginia triggering the release of Federal funds to help communities recover from the Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm. The disaster declaration authorized Public Assistance for Albemarle, Arlington, Caroline, Clarke, Culpeper, Fairfax, Fauquier, Frederick, Highland, King George, Loudoun, Louisa, Madison, Page, Patrick, Prince William, Rappahannock, Spotsylvania, Stafford, and Warren, and the independent cities of Alexandria, Falls Church, Manassas, Manassas Park, and Winchester.

In addition, the following counties were designated for Snow Assistance; Albemarle, Arlington, Caroline, Clarke, Culpeper, Fairfax, Fauquier, Frederick, Highland, King George, Loudoun, Louisa, Madison, Page, Patrick, Prince William, Rappahannock, Spotsylvania, Stafford, and Warren, and the independent cities of Alexandria, Falls Church, Manassas, Manassas Park and Winchester. 

The U.S. Small Business Administration announced March 11 that certain Private NonProfit organizations (PNP)s in Virginia that do not provide critical services of a governmental nature may be eligible to apply for low interest rate disaster loans. These loans are available following a Presidential disaster declaration for Public Assistance resulting from damages caused by a severe winter storm and snowstorm on Jan. 22-23, 2016. 

PNPs located in the following Virginia counties are eligible to apply: Albemarle, Arlington, Caroline, Clarke, Culpeper, Fairfax, Fauquier, Frederick, Highland, King George, Loudoun, Louisa, Madison, Page, Patrick, Prince William, Rappahannock, Spotsylvania, Stafford and Warren; as well as the independent cities of Alexandria, Falls Church, Manassas, Manassas Park and Winchester. Examples of eligible non-critical PNP organizations include, but are not limited to: food kitchens, homeless shelters, museums, libraries, community centers, schools and colleges.

~Assistance will help reimburse state agencies and 25 localities for snow removal and damages~

News Release March 8, 2016 – President Barack Obama has approved federal disaster assistance for Virginia to help state agencies, 25 localities, and certain types of private non-profit organizations recover from the severe snowstorm that impacted the Commonwealth from January 22-24, 2016.

Governor Terry McAuliffe requested federal aid through the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Public Assistance program, which reimburses local and state governments on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work and the repair or replacement of damaged facilities.

“This was one of the worst winter storms to hit Virginia in decades, producing historic snowfalls and blizzard-like conditions across much of the Commonwealth,” said Governor McAuliffe. “This federal assistance will help agencies, communities and organizations recover from the damage of this storm and prepare for future severe weather events.”

Under this approval, FEMA’s Public Assistance program is available to the counties of Albemarle, Arlington, Caroline, Clarke, Culpeper, Fairfax, Fauquier, Frederick, Highland, King George, Loudoun, Louisa, Patrick, Prince William, Rappahannock, Spotsylvania and Stafford; as well as the independent cities of Alexandria, Falls Church, Manassas, Manassas Park and Winchester. The affected contiguous counties that are also eligible for FEMA’s Public Assistance program are Madison, Page, and Warren.

Some costs that are eligible for reimbursement include: activation of emergency personnel to respond to the storm; snow and debris removal; repairs to publicly-owned property, such as roads, water, and sewer systems; and other related emergency services.

Governor McAuliffe declared a state of emergency on January 21st in anticipation of the severe winter storm and mobilized the Virginia National Guard to assist with the emergency response. The Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM) coordinated the storm response with multiple state agencies and other partners. VDEM arranged for resource support and services to assist with assessing water main breaks, transporting critical patients in need of life-saving measures, assessing collapsed/damaged structures, and providing emergency generator power.