MEMORANDUM
TO: Cammack Village Residents
FROM: Harry Light, Mayor
SUBJECT: Debris Removal/FEMA Assistance
DATE: April 23, 2008
I wanted to update you on the status of debris removal from the recent tornado and the status of FEMA Assistance.
Pulaski County will continue to pick up large debris that is within 10 feet of the curb. The crew works from Monday - Thursday. There are a few rules to keep in mind:
1. The County will only pick up "green" debris; that is, tree and limb debris resulting from the storm. PLEASE DO NOT PLACE ANY OTHER DEBRIS IN WITH THE TREES AND LIMBS--YOUR PRIVATE CONTRACTOR SHOULD BE REMOVING THIS DEBRIS AND THE COUNTY AND THE CITY CANNOT REMOVE IT.
2. The debris to be removed must be within ten feet of the street right-of-way. If you have debris in the back yard or other areas outside the 10' limit, you will need to arrange to get it up to the curb line as soon as possible. If you need to hire a contractor to do this, you should check with your insurance company to see if this is a reimbursable expense.
You may have also heard about FEMA assistance. There are two types of FEMA assistance. One type is "individual" assistance and this assistance has been approved for residents of Cammack Village who suffered storm damage that qualifies for this type of relief. In order to be eligible for this assistance, you need to register with FEMA and FEMA representatives will be in the City sometime within the next two weeks to leave information about the type of the assistance which may be available and the procedure to obtain this assistance. If you are not at home when the FEMA representative arrives, they will leave a packet of information for you. There will also be a Disaster Recovery Center set up sometime in the near future (probably on Cantrell) where you will be able to go and obtain assistance in filling out the necessary paperwork and getting your questions answered.
The other type of FEMA assistance is "public" assistance which will reimburse the City for certain expenses in removing debris and repairing public areas. It is the "public" assistance portion that is helping us remove the debris described above. This assistance doesn't cover everything which is why there are rules about what can and cannot be removed.
This is the latest information we have. If you have questions, please call Lynde at 663-4593 or email me at harryl@aristotle.net. We will do everything we can to assist you in recovering from the storm.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
City Council Meeting - Tuesday April, 8, 2008
The Cammack Village City Council met on Tuesday evening, April 8, 2007 at their regularly scheduled meeting. Headlining the agenda was tornado damage updates. Several community utility representatives were present and gave their reports as to progress with regard to restoration of services.
Entergy should have all service restored at this point and will begin removing the debris such as broken poles, wires/lines, transformers etc that may be located in backyards as of Wednesday. They were made aware of streetlights still out on Greenwood and will have a crew take care of that this week also. Please help us by reporting other street lights that may still be out/broken.
Mike Wilson and a Comcast engineer were present and reported that there were three crews from Comcast working in the Village and that now that Entergy has made their repairs, they can begin to start running new cable and hope to have all Comcast customers up by Friday. If you have not gotten good response with Comcast customer service, please post a comment here for your specific problem if you still do not have service by Friday. We can contact Mike Wilson directly for you.
Stan Benton with Central Arkansas Water was present also and indicated that his crews continue to be in the Village and will be ready to make repairs to lines as they arise. He speculates that there may be some broken lines that make themselves known as tree trunks and stumps are being removed. IF...............you have a break from the meter to your residency, YOU will be responsible for that repair and will need to contact a provate plumber. In some cases, if the break is within three feet of the meter on the residences side, Mr. Benton indicated that they would probably go ahead and make that repair for you.
FMEA and Arkansas Disaster Management officials were present and reported that they are still investigating the areas affected and have been inspecting the Village for the past two days. Cammack Village will NOT qualify for FEMA assistance alone and the plan is to add up all damage to Pulaski County in hopes that that total dollar figure will make the amount necessary for Federal relief. They hope to know something by end of the week. If we are approved for FEMA assistance, there will be signs posted through the Village, announcements made in the media and flyers will be attached to each residence. You can monitor this progress be going to the FEMA website.
Pulaski County Road and Bridge is working tirelessly and for FREE to remove debris that is at the curb. They are taking this debris to the Little Rock landfills and this is NOT FREE! As we have been declared a disaster by the state, there will be some state assistance for this bill, but perhaps only about 30%. The Little Rock landfill charges $30.00 per ton so this can add up quickly. If we are granted federal relief with FEMA, the amount for removal billed to Cammack should be covered by 85-90%, leaving about 10% of this bill to be paid by us in Cammack Village. We will have to wait and see what FEMA determines and then deal with the cost at that time.
A representative from the Arkansas Insurance Commission attended the meeting and informed the Council of their services should residents have trouble with their private insurance carriers regarding claims. See this information below.
Entergy should have all service restored at this point and will begin removing the debris such as broken poles, wires/lines, transformers etc that may be located in backyards as of Wednesday. They were made aware of streetlights still out on Greenwood and will have a crew take care of that this week also. Please help us by reporting other street lights that may still be out/broken.
Mike Wilson and a Comcast engineer were present and reported that there were three crews from Comcast working in the Village and that now that Entergy has made their repairs, they can begin to start running new cable and hope to have all Comcast customers up by Friday. If you have not gotten good response with Comcast customer service, please post a comment here for your specific problem if you still do not have service by Friday. We can contact Mike Wilson directly for you.
Stan Benton with Central Arkansas Water was present also and indicated that his crews continue to be in the Village and will be ready to make repairs to lines as they arise. He speculates that there may be some broken lines that make themselves known as tree trunks and stumps are being removed. IF...............you have a break from the meter to your residency, YOU will be responsible for that repair and will need to contact a provate plumber. In some cases, if the break is within three feet of the meter on the residences side, Mr. Benton indicated that they would probably go ahead and make that repair for you.
FMEA and Arkansas Disaster Management officials were present and reported that they are still investigating the areas affected and have been inspecting the Village for the past two days. Cammack Village will NOT qualify for FEMA assistance alone and the plan is to add up all damage to Pulaski County in hopes that that total dollar figure will make the amount necessary for Federal relief. They hope to know something by end of the week. If we are approved for FEMA assistance, there will be signs posted through the Village, announcements made in the media and flyers will be attached to each residence. You can monitor this progress be going to the FEMA website.
Pulaski County Road and Bridge is working tirelessly and for FREE to remove debris that is at the curb. They are taking this debris to the Little Rock landfills and this is NOT FREE! As we have been declared a disaster by the state, there will be some state assistance for this bill, but perhaps only about 30%. The Little Rock landfill charges $30.00 per ton so this can add up quickly. If we are granted federal relief with FEMA, the amount for removal billed to Cammack should be covered by 85-90%, leaving about 10% of this bill to be paid by us in Cammack Village. We will have to wait and see what FEMA determines and then deal with the cost at that time.
A representative from the Arkansas Insurance Commission attended the meeting and informed the Council of their services should residents have trouble with their private insurance carriers regarding claims. See this information below.
Arkansas Insurance Commission
Consumer Services Division
Phone: (501) 371-2640, (800) 852-5494
Fax: (501) 371-2749
Email: insurance.consumers@arkansas.gov
We can help! The Consumer Services Division (CSD) assists consumers with complaints and inquiries regarding insurance companies, agents and adjusters. In the event of significant storm damage or catastrophic events, CSD sends representatives to the damaged area to assist homeowners with filing claims and procuring emergency living expenses from their insurers.
CSD travels statewide to provide educational information and materials, free of charge, at various community groups, fairs, expos, shows and speaking engagements. In addition, they attend Dislocated Worker Workshops in the event of a plant closing or layoff to assist workers with their insurance questions and concerns.
We Need Email Addresses!!!
Please help us communicate with you. You may not have email access at home right now, but you may be able to access email from your workplace, a friends, the library etc.. Please contact the office in the village to provide them with your contact information..........................663-4593.
Utility Restoration Update
As of 4:30PM Tuesday April 8, 2008 -
Entergy - Power should be restored now to all residents in the village. They will begin, weather permitting, to come back around starting tomorrow to pick up line wiring, transformer and broken pole debris. This will take several days.
A T & T - They have several crews currently working in the village and have a lot to do!! they had 48 poles down (these are A T & T poles, not Entergy poles) and have replaced 38 of them so far. They estimate they have almost 7000 feet of cable to run and replace. This will take several days to do. They hope to have all services restored by Sun or Monday at the very latest.
Comcast - I spoke with Mike Wilson personally at Comcast and they are beginning to get their crews in the village as well. They cannot do anything until all poles from other services have been replaced and both Entergy is finished. Entergy is done now and they will be able to begin their work in earnest. Stay tuned for more COmcast updates.
Please know that there is inclement weather is in the forecast for central Arkansas for the next 2-3 days, possibly even some severe. This may hamper the efforts of these utility workers as they do their jobs.
Entergy - Power should be restored now to all residents in the village. They will begin, weather permitting, to come back around starting tomorrow to pick up line wiring, transformer and broken pole debris. This will take several days.
A T & T - They have several crews currently working in the village and have a lot to do!! they had 48 poles down (these are A T & T poles, not Entergy poles) and have replaced 38 of them so far. They estimate they have almost 7000 feet of cable to run and replace. This will take several days to do. They hope to have all services restored by Sun or Monday at the very latest.
Comcast - I spoke with Mike Wilson personally at Comcast and they are beginning to get their crews in the village as well. They cannot do anything until all poles from other services have been replaced and both Entergy is finished. Entergy is done now and they will be able to begin their work in earnest. Stay tuned for more COmcast updates.
Please know that there is inclement weather is in the forecast for central Arkansas for the next 2-3 days, possibly even some severe. This may hamper the efforts of these utility workers as they do their jobs.
Cammack Village Tornado Update
Welcome to the Cammack Village Tornado Blog. This is an attempt to assist with information related to issues concerning Village residents and their questions and concerns or any information related to the tornado clean-up. Feel free to invite friends and family to view this blog and keep updated on our progress. The information below will be distributed to residents who attend tonight's city council meeting. Please feel free to use this site to let other residents know of electricians, carpenters, tree removal services, plumbers, sprinkler service repair companies, roofers and any other tradesmen we may all have a need for in the days to come. PLEASE post names of any unpleasant, expensive, price gouging service people so that others may be warned.
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