Mayor Billy Kenoi said he is “very disappointed” by the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s decision to deny the state’s request for a major disaster declaration in the wake of Tropical Storm Iselle.
“A lot of residents and families in Puna suffered catastrophic loss,” Kenoi said Thursday. “Their homes are destroyed, and we were hopeful the federal government would be helping our communities.”
He urged Gov. Neil Abercrombie to appeal FEMA’s denial “directly to President Obama.” A disaster declaration would allow some residents whose homes were damaged by Iselle to be eligible for federal assistance.
“We remain hopeful that the president will recognize that the residents of Puna need and deserve the assistance that the president and the federal government can provide them,” Kenoi said.
U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard said in a statement she also is “deeply disappointed.”
“It was clear to me during my visit in Puna that assistance is absolutely necessary,” she said. “I will continue to work to identify the immediate next steps and pursue alternate forms of assistance, as well as work toward a long-term approach to confront the invasive albizia tree that contributed to much of the damage in Puna.”
The disaster denial came Thursday morning in a letter by FEMA Administrator W. Craig Fugate, who stated, in part: “(I)t has been determined that the damage from this event was not of such severity and magnitude to be beyond the capabilities of the state, affected local governments and voluntary agencies.”
Abercrombie has 30 days to file an appeal of Fugate’s decision. Abercrombie spokesman Justin Fujioka said the governor is “meeting with to Hawaii Emergency Management Agency to figure what to do from here.”
A statement from HI-EMA said it is continuing “to work with federal and county officials on an application for assistance to rebuild public infrastructure.” That application, which is separate from the individual assistance request, would also go to FEMA.
FEMA assessors worked with the state and county last week to survey the damage to Big Island residences brought on by Iselle.
“In the request, it was 11 destroyed homes and 29 major damaged homes,” Fujioka said. “Normally, that’s far below the threshold of what they normally (consider a major disaster).”
A letter attached to the official disaster declaration request stated 50 homes sustained some sort of damage.
“Our Office of Housing and Community Development went in with our National Guard and they did a thorough assessment,” he said. “We submitted all of the documentation. I know FEMA had different criteria. We might not have had the number of homes destroyed that fit their criteria, but we were told that other factors would be considered, such as trauma to the community, the needs of the community, socioeconomic factors of the community. And we believed those other factors weighed in Puna’s favor.”
Abercrombie and Kenoi issued a joint statement late Thursday saying the state and county “are working together to gather sufficient additional information, including socioeconomic data, to justify a successful appeal.”
“The state also remains eligible for a declaration from the U.S. Small Business Administration, which will enable qualified individuals and businesses to receive low-interest loans for repairs,” according to the statement.
County Civil Defense Administrator Darryl Oliveira said FEMA spent Wednesday and Thursday assessing damage to public infrastructure, including parks, roads, bridges, schools and other public facilities.
“The preliminary assessments should be completed by this week for information to be included in the application for the Public Assistance (infrastructure) Program,” he said.
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.