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Fog/Mist Lynbrook files with FEMA
The village of Lynbrook is seeking money for expenses incurred by tropical storm Irene, leaving sizeable damages through the Tri-state area in August, according to Village Administrator John Giordano.
Officials filed a letter of interest with the Federal Emergency Management Agency on Sept. 14, just a little more than two weeks before the initial deadline on Sept. 30. The deadline has seen been extended for municipalities to October 28.
“It’s preliminary,” said Department of Public Works Superintendent Phil Healey, “… we are seeking reimbursement from the federal government.” He added that the village would like to get as much money as they can get, which will later be determined when officials sit with a FEMA analyst to look at their incurred costs.
The village sustained no major property damage, including unscathed village buildings, Healey said. Flooding was also not an issue, he said, as rain from Irene kept subsiding, allowing for ground drains to absorb the water. In fact, the worst signs of Irene’s presence was the sights of toppled trees and down power lines, resulting in several dozen homes losing electricity during the storm.
However, the village did incur several expenses in the day before the storm, and the following four days after it, Healey said. Those costs include salaries, expenses for vehicles and equipment, labor, and disposal of materials and debris. Fire and police departments employees’ also worked overtime. Before the storm, the police department monitored Irene’s path to determine staffing, and where to place traffic-control barricades. Later, police officers went out on patrols during the storm.
Using volunteers in the fire department to help throughout the storm was as a legitimate expense, Healey said. As reported in the Sept. 1-7 issue of the Herald, volunteers, under the command of First Deputy Chief Anthony DeCarlo, went on standby in their firehouses on Aug. 27 at 11 p.m. They were released 12 hours later, after responding to 14 fire calls and two ambulance calls from residents. Just after being relieved early the next day, they had to return and respond to two more fire calls before noon.
