FEMA Grants Nearly $2 Million to Help Dredge Silt Hurricane Gustav Deposited in Port of Pascagoula
Release Date: December 5, 2008
Release Number: R4-08-246
ATLANTA, Ga. -- The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has approved a $1.9 million award to help the Port of Jackson County, Miss., remove silt left behind by Hurricane Gustav.
This Public Assistance (PA) award covers most of the cost of dredging nearly 100,000 cubic yards of silt Gustav's wind and surf left in the recently-opened Gulf liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal's basin, which is located in the Port of Pascagoula. The amount is based on a comparison of pre- and post-storm hydrographic surveys
"This type of damage to then-existing facilities was a huge issue after Hurricane Katrina," said FEMA Regional Administrator Phil May. "One of the lessons learned from that storm was that we needed surveys to show how much silt was in place, so that we would know after a storm how much of it was new."
Having that information allows FEMA to fund restoring a facility to its pre-disaster condition by, in this case, dredging material to empty the basin to the contours that existed before the storm.
FEMA is covering 75 percent of a total project cost approaching $2.5 million. PA dollars help state and local governments and certain not-for-profit entities recover from disaster in several ways, including restoring their facilities to pre-disaster conditions. The funds are granted to states after major disaster declarations, in this case Hurricane Gustav (DR-1794-MS).
FEMA coordinates the federal government's role in preparing for, preventing, mitigating the effects of, responding to, and recovering from all domestic disasters, whether natural or man-made, including acts of terror
