By: Erin Smith
The Bladen County Board of Commissioners met on Monday night and heard an update regarding Hurricane Matthew from Bladen County Emergency Management Director Bradley Kinlaw.
Kinlaw said that there have not been any Hurricane related hazard mitigation funds Issued since Hurricane Floyd.
Kinlaw told the board that the hazard mitigation program will see $150 million spread among the 50 counties that were impacted by Hurricane Matthew. Kinlaw said in order to receive funds, your home must have had flood water inside.
Kinlaw told the board that there are three possible actions the county can take to assist a homeowner. The first is acquisition and demolition. This would require the county to purchase the home and make it a greenway. Kinlaw said the land would always belong to the county.
The second option is to elevate the home i.e. raise the home using stilts or other methods.
The third option is mitigation reconstruction. These funds are used to tear the house down and rebuild one of similar size.
Kinlaw told the board that his staff are also working with the school system to identify a generator size for each high school and apply for a grant to purchase a generator for each high school for use in the emergency shelter.
He said that staff will begin collecting applications and submit them to FEMA on October 10, 2017. He said it could take as much as one year for funds to be dispersed from FEMA.
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