If you live in Whitley or Knox counties and your home was destroyed or damaged by the storms that took place in late May, then you may be able to get help from the federal government for things, such as damage to your home and emergency housing costs among other things.
Whitley and Knox counties were included along with 13 other counties in a federal disaster declaration, which was approved by President Joe Biden on July 23. The declaration covers damage from severe storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes, landslides and mudslides from May 21-27, 2024.
The President’s action makes federal funding available to affected individuals in Butler, Caldwell, Calloway, Christian, Clay, Greenup, Hopkins, Knox, Logan, Muhlenberg, Simpson, Todd, Trigg, Warren and Whitley counties. Assistance can include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses and other programs to help individuals and business owners recover from the effects of the disaster.
The May 26-27 storms in Whitley County were likely straight-line winds that got up to about 90 mph and followed a similar path as the April 2 storm primarily going through north eastern Whitley County, said Whitley County Emergency Management Director Jerry Rains.
“It was more extensive than the April wind storm. It hit a lot of the same area, but it went further from Bee Creek all the way over to Highway 26 and Woodbine. From Eatontown Road over to Woodbine was one of the hardest areas we had hit,” Rains said. “We had a total of 27 homes that were damaged. Some of those were destroyed. Some were major. Some were minor. It was all across the board.”
“Because we have an individual assistance declaration that is for the residents and the damage to their homes, that will allow FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) to come in and talk with them. Even if they have their home insured, FEMA is still able to help them with the deductible on their insurance and some other expenses that may not be covered by insurance,” Rains said.
“I would encourage everyone, who had damage to register either on the website or call the FEMA number to get registered to see if they would be entitled to any benefits from it.”
Rains said that the disaster declaration can entitle affected residents to immediate money to pay for food, water, clothes and things like that, which were destroyed during the storm.
“If they had to move out of their house and rent another house because of the storm, they can get rental assistance. There is just a whole avenue of opportunities that they can explore with FEMA,” Rains said.
Applying for benefits
Residents and business owners who sustained losses in the designated areas can begin applying for assistance at DisasterAssistance.gov, by calling 800-621-FEMA (3362) or by using the FEMA App. Anyone using a relay service, such as video relay service (VRS), captioned telephone service or other similar service, can give FEMA the number for that service.
When you apply for assistance, please have the following information ready: a current phone number where you can be contacted, your address at the time of the disaster, the address where you are now staying, your social security number, a general list of damage and loses, banking information (if you chose direct deposit), and, if you are insured, your policy number or the agent and/or the company name.
Take photos to document damage and begin cleanup and repairs to prevent further damage. Remember to keep receipts from all purchases related to any cleanup and repair.
Residents should file insurance claims as soon as possible. FEMA cannot duplicate benefits for losses covered by insurance. If the insurance policy does not cover all disaster expenses, policy holders may be eligible for federal assistance.
Federal funding is also available to state and eligible local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work and the repair or replacement of disaster-damaged facilities damaged by severe storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes, landslides and mudslides in Adair, Allen, Ballard, Barren, Breckinridge, Butler, Caldwell, Calloway, Carlisle, Christian, Clay, Clinton, Crittenden, Cumberland, Edmonson, Estill, Fulton, Garrard, Graves, Grayson, Green, Hart, Hickman, Hopkins, Jackson, Knox, Larue, Laurel, Lee, Leslie, Livingston, Logan, Lyon, Marshall, McCracken, McCreary, McLean, Meade, Menifee, Metcalfe, Monroe, Muhlenberg, Ohio, Owsley, Pulaski, Rockcastle, Russell, Simpson, Todd, Trigg, Warren, Washington, Wayne, Whitley and Woodford counties.
Federal funding is also available on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures statewide.
The public assistance portion of the declaration allows the county to recoup money that it spent out during the storm doing such things as cutting fallen or partially fallen trees, cutting them up and disposal of the trees.
“Mainly it is the individuals, who are going to benefit from this disaster declaration,” Rains added.
In addition to the Whitley County damage, the National Weather Service in Jackson confirmed a brief EF-1 tornado on May 26 that spun-up near the Legacy Chevrolet dealership near the Corbin bypass and US25E in Knox County and travelled less than one mile before dissipating between Lynn Camp High School and Lynn Camp Elementary School.
April storms
On May 22, Biden approved a federal disaster declaration for Whitley County and 10 other Kentucky counties in connection with April 2-3 tornadoes and storms that swept across Kentucky.
Rains said that after the April storm, the FEMA came down and did a joint damage assessment with him in Whitley County where a total of 21 homes were surveyed.
The survey showed that 10 homes were destroyed in the Diamond Acres RV Resort. Out of the remaining 11 homes surveyed, four had major damage, three had minor damage and four were affected. All of the residents did have insurance.
Rains noted that it is very unusual to have federal disaster declarations from storms in two consecutive months, which affected much of the same areas.
“I don’t know about the climate change or what, but we are having more storms and more violent storms and having them more frequently. They are hitting the same areas, which is really causing us issues,” he said.
Rains said that it is probably just luck that both the April and May storms just so happened to strike the same areas.
“The weather pattern seems to be taking the same path and it seems we are under the bullseye now,” he added.
