(Updated — This story was updated at 7:50 p.m. with comments from Mayor Bruno “Ralphy” Lozano)
Karen Gleason
Val Verde County was one of 31 counties added Monday to the major disaster declaration for individual assistance, a move local officials said will make it easier for residents affected by last week’s winter weather event to obtain federal assistance.
“Keep your receipts,” Val Verde County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. counseled Monday night after learning of the designation.
Owens said the designation will allow local home- and business owners to seek reimbursement through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for expenses tied to last week’s winter storm damage.
“For the average resident of Val Verde County affected by the winter storm, it will hinge on whether or not they have insurance. They will have to make a claim through their insurance first, and if an individual does not have insurance, they will be able to apply for funds to get houses fixed or to reimbursed for funds they have been spending because of the winter storm or damages from the cold weather,” the county judge said.
Val Verde County was not included in the first round of Texas counties to obtain the disaster designation, and Owens said he still isn’t sure why.
“We all did more than a little bit of pushing, and we really couldn’t figure out why we weren’t in that first round. We set all kinds of records: snowfall, temperature. If we did something wrong or if there was something we should have done that we didn’t do, I’d sure like to know about it. Everything we needed to do was done,” Owens said.
The county judge said he and other county officials “spent Saturday night on the phone with everyone we could think of throughout the state,” as well as speaking to the area’s federal representatives.
Owens praised the work done by County Emergency Management Coordinator Rowland Garza.
“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I don’t know where we’d be without him,” Owens said.
Mayor Bruno “Ralphy” Lozano commented on the designation in a telephone interview Tuesday morning.
“I never doubted that we would receive this designation, simply because of the severity of the event, and I would encourage all residents to continue keeping track of their expenses and filing claims under the appropriate web sites,” Lozano said.
