Rock Hill homeowners will get state help to fix hail-damaged roofs. Here’s who qualifies

More than 60 Rock Hill homeowners whose homes were damaged in an April hail storm could get help for roof, window or siding repairs after South Carolina lawmakers sent the city $500,000.

The money is part of the state’s yearly budget that began July 1, city and state officials said.

The storm caused millions in damages in a swath of southern Rock Hill, but there was not enough damage for the federal government to declare the storm a disaster. That means there was not federal disaster aid, aside from some small business loans, available to the city or residents.

Rep. John King, D-Rock Hill, pushed for the money from the state budget, then worked with Republicans who also represent York County to get it added to the budget. King represents much of the area that was hardest hit in the storm.

York County House of Representatives Republicans Heath Sessions and Brandon Guffey also praised the bipartisan effort to help people of southern Rock Hill.

King said he had asked for 10 times as much money from the state’s budget, but the storm came near the end of the state budget process.

Who will get help in Rock Hill?

Crucially, the money will go toward repairs and rebuilding people’s homes, King said.

The people eligible for help were already identified after the storm by York County Emergency Management during damage assessment. They are homeowners, often of generational, family owned houses, according to King, Guffey and Katie Quinn, a Rock Hill spokesperson..

The people who qualified do not have insurance because mortgages are already paid, but they qualify for help under income guidelines, Quinn said.

The $500,000 in state money will be added to more than $110,000 already donated by the public and companies in cash, labor and materials, Quinn said.

The city through its housing development arm already fixed a dozen homes, Quinn said. Another 21 homes have been identified as potentially qualifying for roof repairs, Quinn said,

About 40 other homeowners have been identified who could for qualify window and/or siding repairs, she said.

The National Weather Service said in April the storm was the most damaging in memory. Afterward, hundreds of local and traveling volunteers helped with cleanup and other services.