Casey wants FEMA hurricane aid in place before winter

If this winter is anything like the last two, things are going to get ugly. And before that happens, Sen. Bob Casey wants FEMA to deliver the relief the agency has allotted for Hurricane Irene recovery in Pennsylvania.

“With winter fast approaching and much of the state still reeling from an unprecedented storm season, the slow pace of FEMA aid flowing into the state could imperil rebuilding projects across the state,” reads part of Casey’s letter to FEMA head Craig Fugate.

“Pennsylvania has been hit with a double wammy- flooding that has damaged countless homes and entire communities and now a slow aid process that could cripple our recovery.”

Some estimates put the state’s storm damage at $200 million. A news release from Casey’s office cites projects in Montgomery and Delaware counties awaiting relief funding, and his letter for asks for quicker action from FEMA to get those repairs and others completed before the state gets blanketed in snow.