Sunbright tornado victims not eligible for federal assistance

MORGAN COUNTY, Tenn. (WATE) — Tornado victims in Sunbright and Morgan County are not eligible for federal assistance through FEMA, according to the Morgan County Office of Emergency Management.

On Tuesday, an EF-1 with wind speeds of up to 105 miles per hour touched down in the Sunbright community. While an early warning has been credited for saving lives, the area was left with damage to buildings, homes, and structures.

As those in the area have worked to clean up the debris the storm left behind, the
Morgan County Office of Emergency Management announced that a TEMA review determined that the criteria was not met for federal assistance through FEMA to be made available.

The Morgan County Office of Emergency Management coordinated with TEMA after the tornado to begin assessing the damage and ensuring that the immediate life-safety needs were met. The damage assessments were evaluated against federal criteria that determined if the county and state would meet the eligibility requirements for federal disaster assistance.

At a press conference on Friday, TEMA Director Patrick Sheehan explained that he was there to help with the assessment so that they would be able to assess what kinds of assistance they could give and what would be available to those affected, including working with volunteer organization partners, loans, grants, and other programs. He added that TEMA will be working with the city continuously.

“We will continue evaluating to see what programs might be available, whether loans or grants, and we’ll certainly be working with our nonprofit partners and trying to find the direct way to make sure that donations go directly to the hands of these survivors,” Sheehan said.

Anyone in Morgan County who has been affected by the tornado is encouraged to take photos of any weather-related damage before beginning cleanup efforts and then contact their insurance company. Additionally, the Morgan County Office of Emergency Management shared that those working on cleanup efforts should avoid entering collapsed structures and avoid downed powerlines.

On Tuesday, April 9, Morgan County Officials will be at a town hall meeting at 6:30 p.m. to answer questions from the public. The meeting will be at the Sunbright Community Center located at 120 Melton Drive.

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