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Assessor: 59 structures destroyed from storms |
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Sunday, 20 April 2008 |
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By Jillian Duke
Courier Staff Fifty-nine dwellings and structures in Saline County so far have been identified as destroyed because of the April 3 storms, County Assessor Jim Crawford said.
“We will be taking these properties off the books, and people will be notified,” he said.
Crawford said the amount of damage translates to about $3 million countywide.
He added, “We’re still trying to locate everything in regard to real estate that was destroyed. Once we do that, we’ll let everyone know it’s being taken off the assessment roll.”
In regard to personal property, he requests that people who have destroyed cars, trucks and boats to call his office at 303-5622 “so we can address that.”
The normal deadline to get personal property off the books is May 31, he said, but if people can provide proof that their property was damaged in the storms, “we’ll be happy to take it off.”
To find out if real estate property is included in the 59 properties already identified, Crawford said people may call 303-5624.
“We would like the to call if they’ve experienced extensive damage and we can tell them quickly if we’ve got them on the list, and if not, we’ll plan a trip to their place and inspect it.”
People needing to make claims through the Federal Emergency Management Agency may do so by calling 1-800-621-FEMA. The county was declared a federal disaster area earlier this week.
Also, a local disaster recovery center manned by FEMA representatives will be set up in Benton for people to make claims and for other disaster-related services. The location will be announced once it’s determined.
In other storm relief news, the Benton Community Development Department will set up a mobile permit office at the guard shack at Hurricane Lake Estates from Monday through Saturday, May 2.
The office will be open from 9 a.m. to noon Monday-Friday and may be reached at 317-5304.
“We realized that it might help eliminate some of the trouble for homeowners in this area if we brought the permit and inspection office to them, since this is one of the most remote parts of Benton,” he said.
After the two weeks end, the need for the mobile office will be re-evaluated.
“If we find the Hurricane Lake Estates office is still being used a lot, we will extend the time on a week-by-week basis,” Towe said.
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