The Federal Emergency Management Agency will not give money to Oxford homeowners whose properties were damaged in the flooding that swept through the Housatonic River/Route 34 corridor on March 7, First Selectwoman Mary Ann Drayton-Rogers announced.
Drayton-Rogers said at a Board of Selectmen meeting Wednesday that since being notified last week, the town has contacted about 15 homeowners along Route 34 and notified them they can instead apply for low-interest loans from the federal Small Business Administration.
Several have returned applications.
She emphasized that the town has done everything it can do to help those residents along the river, but the FEMA funding did not materialize.
“We did find out that the region did not qualify for emergency aid. Since that time, through SBA, the Small Business Adminstration, we heard they are providing low interest loans for the residents if they are interested in applying for them,” she said, adding it is not known if the region will qualify for those loans.
The Housatonic River hit its highest level since 1984 during that day, when a combination of heavy rain and melting snow pushed the river to its fifth highest level ever since records were kept.
First Light, the utility company that owns the Stevenson Dam, has been widely criticized by Valley towns for not giving more notice about the company’s decisions to let more water through the dam.
The Housatonic River’s flood stage is 11 feet. The water level during the flood was at 21.2 feet.
While the flooding in March was the worse seen in years, but the amount of damage and the number of homeowners affected did not meet the FEMA criteria, Drayton-Rogers said. FEMA is the agency that aids entire regions during natural disasters like hurricanes.
The only thing to do now is apply for low interest loans, rather than grants. Selectman David McKane said it would be nice to see Oxford get some assistance.
“It would be nice for these folks down on the river to get some help,” McKane said.
