More than $3 million in federal disaster funding was approved for Northumberland County property owners in the wake of last month's flooding.
Of 1,595 applications submitted by county property owners, 978 applicants were approved for a combined $3.27 million, Michael Sweet, public information officer for Federal Emergency Management Agency, said Oct. 11.
In Columbia County, Sweet said there were 2,238 applications, with 1,367 applicants approved for $6.6 million, and $1.8 million doled out to 429 eligible applicants of 697 who applied for aid from Schuylkill County.
Applicants denied federal disaster aid may appeal the decision by calling 1-800-621-FEMA or by visiting a disaster relief center at Northumberland County Career and Arts Center, Eighth and Arch streets, Shamokin. They also may seek low-interest disaster loans from Small Business Administration.
Property owners who have not yet registered with FEMA in search of federal relief have until Nov. 14 to do so.
On Sept. 14, President Barack Obama declared Northumberland County a disaster zone, among a list that now numbers 24 Pennsylvania counties, including Columbia, Schuylkill, Snyder and Union.
That designation followed a four-day rain event when Tropical Storm Lee passed through the Northeast from Sept. 7 to Sept. 10, inundating the area with record rainfall that caused creeks to overflow and flash flooding to occur, leaving behind millions of dollars in municipal, residential and commercial damage.
The flooding hardly stopped when Lee moved on. Nearly 20 inches of rain fell last month in Northumberland County, much of it coming in heavy doses and causing additional flooding throughout the lower end of the county and beyond.