Jan. 11, 2014
Gifford, Illinois
(Photo courtesy of will.illinois.edu)
GIFFORD — Residents of a central Illinois village hit by a powerful November tornado say they’re upset and bewildered by a federal decision this week to deny a state request for aid to reimburse local governments for cleanup and repairs – a judgment Gov. Pat Quinn has vowed to appeal.
Around two dozen tornadoes damaged or destroyed thousands of homes and businesses in Illinois on Nov. 17. The one that raked through Gifford, a small farming community of just under 1,000 people, leveled around 70 homes and damaged the village’s water systems.
The owner of Gifford’s North Forty bar, Mike Swinney – whose own home was destroyed – told The (Champaign) News-Gazette he couldn’t fathom how the U.S. government chose not to provide the aid.
“We give all this money to foreign countries and stuff and … we’re basically surviving on well water,” he said.
Added Lorin Schluter, the owner of Bibb’s restaurant, “It’s a snub of the nose.”
The Federal Emergency Management Agency notified Illinois Thursday it had denied the request for $6.1 million to reimburse part of what local governments spent on cleanup and repairs, ruling the infrastructure damage wasn’t severe enough to warrant the federal help.