With an estimated bill of $7.8 million spent on tornado recovery, Leon County government is looking to replenish its catastrophe fund and review its performance after the May 10 storms and twisters.
That will happen at the county commission's next meeting on July 9.
As part of their meeting agenda, staff will be presenting to the board an "after-action report" on what has now been deemed by emergency officials to be the "May 10 Tornado Outbreak."
An after-action report is standard practice for the county following natural disasters, with information such as findings and recommendations for future events. Similar reports have been made following Hurricanes Hermine, Irma and Michael.
The county's report comes amid ongoing applications for FEMA reimbursement from businesses and residents. The costs noted in the report cover only the portions of the county outside the city of Tallahassee limits.
More: FEMA says teams now in Leon County to help residents apply for help, offer referrals
Replenishing the Catastrophe Fund for hurricane season
The commission will look to pour $8.3 million into the local "Cat Fund," as it's called, to be broken up into two portions, one which will go to covering recent storm costs and the other earmarked for future expenses.
Commissioners voted to allocate $1 million from the Cat Fund towards the Targeted Emergency Assistance Microgrant (TEAM) Leon Program, which left that balance at $2.5 million. The county is looking to add $500,000, putting the balance for hurricane season at $3 million.
In response to the TEAM Leon Program and as part of the report, staff are leaving it up to the commission to amend the fund's policy to allow for microgrant programs in the future after a declared state of emergency and for isolated events, such as the May 10 tornadoes.
The secondary portion covering storm costs will seek to pay off the whole $7.8 million bill, primarily spent on debris removal and monitoring, according to county spokesperson Matt Cavell. Money spent by the county will be reimbursed by FEMA, he added.
Lessons learned, looking ahead
In the after-action report, staff provide storm stats and analysis on what went right, and what they hope to apply moving forward.
Staff members reviewed the deployment of Damage Assessment Teams to communities, and provided direction for future improvement, like supplying teams with informational materials to give residents. The county found a total of 23 areas in which to grow storm response.
In the wake of the tornado outbreak, the county acknowledged the need for additional assistance and preparedness for vulnerable communities, using Brookestone Senior Living as an example. The county noted Brookestone "highlighted inadequate emergency preparedness and poor communication."
The county looks to work to "increase coordination and resource sharing" with state entities such as the Department of Elder Affairs.
Other takeaways: A need for better system integration, connecting county staff across the board, providing residents with real time information on things such as road obstructions and informational materials.
The county also will assess the cost and need for tornado shelters and provide yearly trainings for staff on hurricane season.
The tornadoes in numbers
The report included numbers on damages and the county's response efforts. (Again, these include only the parts of the county not inside the city of Tallahassee.) For example:
- 300 hours of activation at County Emergency Operations Center over 29 days
- 487,993,979 million views by residents across Leon County social media platforms
- More than 63,000 visitors to the County Emergency Information Portal
- 1,500 trees removed in first 24 hours
- 130 roads cleared in first 24 hours
- Over 280,000 cubic yards of debris collected
- 174 destroyed structures
- 742 major damaged structures
- 779 minor damaged structures
- 417 affected structures
If you go
The Leon County Commission meets at 3 p.m. Tuesday on the 5th floor of the Leon County Courthouse. A public hearing on other matters is set to begin at 6 p.m.
Arianna Otero is the City Solutions Reporter for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact her via email at AOtero@tallahassee.com or on Twitter/X: @ari_v_otero .
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Leon County's bill for tornado recovery? Around $7.8 million, according to new report
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