A county in Georgia will not receive any federal relief funds after a tornado that swept through the South in April destroyed dozens of homes in the area, authorities said.
Murray County Commissioner Greg Hogan told news outlets Tuesday that President Donald Trump declined to declare the county a disaster site.
Hogan said he was told by the Federal Emergency Management Administration Friday morning that the value of the damaged property in the county did not reach the minimal $7 million to qualify for federal relief funds.
“It broke my heart,” he told the Chattanooga Free Press.
Dewayne Bain, the emergency management director for Murray County, said 254 homes were affected by the tornado, and 62 were destroyed. A majority of the damage in the county “was in the mobile home parks and the dollar amount just didn’t add up,” Hogan added.
Trump issued a disaster declaration on April 25 for several counties in Tennessee that were affected by the tornado. In one of those counties, the damage was estimated to be up to $300 million, the Chattanooga Free Press reported.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp has 30 days to appeal the disaster decision by the federal government, Hogan said.
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