Thirteen more Texas counties eligible for public assistance

WACO - Public Assistance to repair damaged infrastructure is available in 13 additional Texas counties, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced recently.

Communities in Atascosa, Delta, Edwards, Ellis, Henderson, Hood, Jim Hogg, Real, Refugio, Shackelford, Upshur, Uvalde and Zavala counties may apply for assistance to recover from severe storms, tornadoes and flooding for the incident period of June 16 - Aug. 3.

Public asistance funds are now available to 63 Texas counties.

Public assistance is available to eligible applicants for debris removal and disposal, emergency services related to the disaster, and for the repair or replacement of damaged public facilities such as roads, buildings and utilities.

Eligible applicants include state, county and local government and some private non-profits such as educational and medical facilities.

FEMA will provide 75 percent of the cost of eligible projects including:

• Public roads and bridges not on the Federal Aid System;

• Public water control facilities, including dams and drainage channels;

• Public utilities such as water treatment, sewage treatment and electrical; public buildings such as police and fire stations, libraries and public office buildings, including their vehicles and contents; and

• Public parks and recreation facilities, including playgrounds, swimming pools, tennis courts, golf courses, ball fields and boat ramps.

State and FEMA officials will hold applicant briefings in affected areas.

FEMA will assign a Public Assistance Coordinator to each applicant to ensure each applicant's needs are met throughout the process.