Rahall: FEMA Funding Awarded for Raleigh County Flood Damage

WASHINGTON, D.C. – December 19, 2011 – (RealEstateRama) — U.S. Rep. Nick Rahall (D-W.Va.) Friday announced federal flood recovery monies for Raleigh County, enabling long-term hazard mitigation measures to move forward for homes damaged by flooding in Beaver and Fairdale.

“This federal funding invests in families and their futures. It allows families to relocate out of the flood plain, and by restoring the floodplain, it helps reduce any future flooding downstream,” said Rahall. “The more we protect life, limb and property, the higher we raise the quality of life in our communities, and that spells growth for families and businesses.”

The Raleigh County Hazard Mitigation Grant project was awarded $534,441 to acquire and demolish nine residential properties, eight in Beaver and one in Fairdale, all damaged by flash flooding related to the severe rainfall on March 12, 2010. The structures will be razed and the area restored to open space in perpetuity.

The Hazard Mitigation Grant was awarded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to the State of West Virginia as the federal share of the $712,588 total cost of the project. The assistance was authorized under a major disaster declaration issued in May 2009, which makes federal funding available on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures for project areas that suffer repeated flood damage, as well as facing imminent danger to life with each flood.