Massive flooding last summer hit Spencer, Iowa, hard.
Spencer City Council members in a Tuesday meeting got an update that showed the city is still waiting on possible reimbursements of $5.5 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. That money was drawn from city budget reserves, for carrying the most important, immediate flooding repair needs to crucial infrastructure in 2024.
Spencer City Manager Kevin Robinson on Wednesday told Siouxland Public Media News that the first FEMA reimbursement to the city of $450,000 will be received by early September. He hopes more will arrive in upcoming months.
Heavy rains in Northwest Iowa and South Dakota in June 2024 delivered a wallop to such rivers as the Little Sioux running through Spencer. People were flooded out of homes.
Robinson explained a second flooding recovery piece, as 40 people have asked to receive FEMA buyouts of their homes, as they do not want to stay and repair their homes.
Those buyout requests are filed with FEMA. Robinson said decisions could be coming from the agency by the end of this year, but the eventual demolitions may not occur until mid-2026.
He said the range of the buyouts of the 40 homes could be in the range from $100,000 to $260,000, based on their values last year before the flood.
*In other disaster recovery news, the Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management is visiting neighborhoods in Woodbury County that were impacted by last year's flooding.
Those emergency personnel began that work at noon Wednesday and will be continuing until 9 p.m. The Riverside area of Sioux City and the town of Correctionville were some impacted places in Woodbury County.
They will be working to connect flooding survivors with resources in the Disaster Case Advocacy Program. Those personnel in teams of two will be wearing neon vests and ID badges.
The program can help people in working with FEMA, applying for disaster assistance, and developing a home rebuilding plan.
More information about Diaster Case Advocacy Program can be found online at homelandsecurity.iowa.gov/assistance.
