Morrow County commissioners push to document storm damage ahead of FEMA deadline

Commissioner (S3) urged local governments and county departments to complete damage assessments and submit them promptly so Morrow County can meet a per-capita threshold required for federal reimbursement. "We have to make our number so that we can actually get reimbursement," he said.

The board heard that most reported damage was limited to downed trees and power lines rather than road or culvert failures. Commissioner (S3) said two county electric co-ops are compiling additional data that will be added to the county’s submission and that schools and townships were notified to file their reports by the stated deadline.

Commissioner (S1) said the county has hired an intermittent worker, Tim Hoffman, for debris removal and that staff must gather hours from the jail, highway garage and other county entities to document eligible costs. Commissioner (S3) noted the county faces a per-capita threshold of "about 169,000 and some change, almost a 170,000" that it must reach to qualify for reimbursement.

Officials described generator usage during the incident: Mount Gilead operated two generators to power the jail and 911, and county staff plan to request hour-meter data from those sites to calculate costs. The board also discussed collecting data from volunteer fire departments and village operations to ensure the county’s total reflects all eligible expenses.

The session ended with commissioners saying staff would continue outreach to townships and villages and compile the documentation needed for FEMA and state reporting.