, ,

As Towns Recover From Storms, Lawmaker Warns Against Using Up Disaster Aid

Sen. Bob Jauch Says That Fund Needs To Last Until Next June

By
A farm damaged by a recent tornado in Iowa County. Photo: Shamane Mills/WPR News.

While the state’s disaster aid fund is covering losses from the extensive damage storms and and tornadoes caused around Wisconsin this year, one legislator says the money could potentially run out.

Storms and tornadoes in June struck Grant, Green, and Dane counties, with other storms causing damage this summer in St. Croix and Dunn counties. The latest batch smacked Price, Sawyer and Washburn counties earlier this month, when two storms dumped 6 inches of rain in 12 hours.

Phillips City Public Works Director Bronson Thalacker said that those recent storms were intense. “Just a complete wash-out,” he said. “I mean the rain was coming down so hard you couldn’t see 10 feet in front of you. It was one for the books.”

Stay informed on the latest news

Sign up for WPR’s email newsletter.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Thalacker said they’re still cleaning up debris, though things are getting back to normal.

Affected counties are looking to the state’s Disaster Aid Fund for help. State Emergency Management spokeswoman Lori Getter said the fund is drawing down.

“Actually, we’re doing fairly well,” Getter said. “We did have tornadoes earlier this year. We’re looking probably about $370,000 will go toward those communities through our disaster fund, which would leave almost $500,000 for the storms up north.”

Getter said damage estimates are at about $1.3 million from those storms, though some of that may not be covered. State Sen. Bob Jauch, however, said the fund has to cover disasters through next June.

“The fact is, you don’t want the fund to run dry so that a community dealing with disaster doesn’t have to worry about the potential uncertainty or the uncertainty of a Legislature that may not respond to it,” he said.

Jauch wants Emergency Management to ask the state’s budget committee for another $1 million to get through the next nine months.

The disaster fund was created by the Legislature in 2006 to help local governments that don’t qualify for federal disaster relief.

Check out a slideshow of tornado damage in Dane County here.