PANAMA CITY, Fla. — FEMA has approved $10,339,749 for the state of Florida to reimburse Panama City for debris removal costs following Hurricane Michael.
Between Oct. 10, 2018 and Nov. 24, 2018 workers removed 1,283,053 cubic yards of debris from public rights of way. Disaster-generated debris posed a threat to public health, safety, natural resources and tourism.
This is the completion of an expedited project, initially awarded in March 2019 at 50 percent of eligible costs incurred. The total project cost is $20,333,489.
This grant is funded by FEMA’s Public Assistance program, an essential source of funding for communities recovering from a federally declared disaster or emergency. The Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM) works with FEMA during all phases of the PA program and reviews projects prior to FEMA final approval.
Applicants work directly with FEMA to develop projects and scopes of work. FEMA obligates funding for projects after final approval.
Once a project is obligated by FEMA, FDEM works closely with applicants to finalize grants and begin making payments. FDEM has implemented new procedures designed to ensure grant funding is provided to local communities as quickly as possible.
FEMA’s Public Assistance program provides grants to state, tribal and local governments, and certain private nonprofit organizations, including houses of worship, so communities can quickly respond to and recover from major disasters or emergencies.
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FEMA’s mission: Helping people before, during, and after disasters. For a list of resources available
to individuals and businesses affected by Hurricane Michael, visit www.floridadisaster.org/info. For more Hurricane Michael recovery information, visit www.fema.gov/disaster/4399. Follow FEMA and the Florida Division of Emergency Management on Twitter at @FEMARegion4 and @FLSERT. You may also visit FEMA and the Division’s Facebook pages at Facebook.com/FEMA and Facebook.com/FloridaSERT.