In the News

Newnan Times-Herald 

Rep. Drew Ferguson expressed his displeasure with FEMA’s decision to deny Individual Assistance to Coweta County in the aftermath of the March 26 tornado. 

Ferguson was in town on Monday to speak to members of the community at the Redneck Gourmet on the Newnan Court Square. The meeting packed the restaurant, and allowed Ferguson to answer questions from members of the community.

“At this point, what our office has done is, we’ve asked for direct involvement with FEMA. We’re trying to find some appeal process to go through. FEMA has officially denied the appeal, and we are calling on our Democratic senators to step up and to lean in heavy with the Administration to get the relief we need.” 

Ferguson said his office has not received any communication from FEMA as to why the administration denied Individual Assistance to those impacted by the tornado. 

Officially, FEMA cited the reason for denying Individual Assistance for Coweta County was that the damage from the EF-4 tornado was not severe enough to warrant a declaration of Individual Assistance.

“It’s pretty opaque,” Ferguson said of the communication from FEMA. “I challenge anyone to walk through the neighborhoods that were hardest hit and tell me how those folks are less deserving than the people in Tennessee and Alabama that got individual assistance.” 

In Alabama, FEMA granted a designation for Individual Assistance for eight counties — Bibb, Calhoun, Clay, Hale, Jefferson, Perry, Randolph and Shelby. The day of Newnan’s EF-4 tornado, an EF-3 tornado went through Bibb, Shelby and St. Clair counties, injuring five people. 

Six people were killed, and 10 were injured when another EF-3 went through Calhoun and Cherokee counties. Another 13 people were injured when a third EF-3 went through Hale, Perry, Bibb, Chilton and Shelby counties. 

As of Monday, a total of $1,953,450.91 in Individual Assistance grants had been approved for 341 Individual Assistance applications. In Tennessee, FEMA approved a designation for Individual Assistance for Williamson County, Davidson County and Wilson County in the metro Nashville area after the state sustained a number of weather disasters, including tornadoes and flooding, between March 25 and April 3. According to FEMA, a total of $1,427,829.98 in Individual Assistance funds have been approved for 399 applications. 

Last month, when The Newnan Times-Herald asked what was different between the storms in Alabama and Tennessee, which resulted in the granting of Individual Assistance, and in Georgia, where Individual Assistance was not granted, a FEMA spokesperson said that the states’ declarations are reviewed independently of each other.