$10M federal grant to go toward storm victim employment: Cooper

CHARLOTTE (QUEEN CITY NEWS) – $10 million will be put towards employing residents who have been devastated by Hurricane Helene thanks to a federal grant, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper announced Friday.

“The impacts from Hurricane Helene have been catastrophic for Western North Carolina, causing immense damage to many communities and hurting our state’s economy as well,” said Governor Cooper. “As we continue our unprecedented response effort to surge resources into affected areas, this grant from our federal partners will help provide critical jobs and training services to folks who need them. We’re grateful for the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to helping our state rebuild and recover from this storm.”

The money is coming from the U.S. Department of Labor.

“We look forward to using these resources to support disaster relief and recovery by connecting people who need work with organizations that need workers,” said N.C. Commerce Secretary Machelle Baker Sanders. “The challenges facing the communities of western North Carolina are immense, but our people are resilient, and together, we will rebuild.”

The counties eligible are: Alexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Buncombe, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, Clay, Cleveland, Gaston, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Lincoln, Macon, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell, Polk, Rutherford, Transylvania, Watauga, Wilkes and Yancey counties.

$2 million will be made available immediately with the rest to be distributed over the next few months to support workforce development.

Also announced on Friday is that impacted restaurants can now apply to operate under emergency guidelines. “Restaurants are deeply rooted in the communities they serve, and we are working closely with businesses and local health departments to get them back open safely as soon as possible,” said NCDHHS State Environmental Health Director Larry Michael. So far 70 restaurants have been given approval to operate.

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