We agree with Mayor Dan Rizzo that President Barack Obama should have declared a disaster for the entire historic winter that dropped more than 100 inches of snow on the Greater Boston area, including the City of Revere.
Instead the President only declared a disaster for Jan. 26-28, the first major snowstorm of the year.
The President’s decision means that Revere and other cities and towns will receive less disaster aid than had been anticipated by city leaders statewide. The President granted Massachusetts $90 million in disaster aid, far short of the state’s request.
Revere was one of the communities that had to deal with the most severe effects of the snowstorms that resulted in an expenditure of $1 million in snow removal and cleanup costs.
Mayor Rizzo said he was grateful for the disaster aid for the late January storm but “disappointed†that the President didn’t realize the enormity of the impact on the city through late January and all of February.
We credit our mayor for working hard in coordination with local and state officials, including Governor Charlie Baker – who traveled to Washington to make a presentation to FEMA – to try to convince federal officials that this was a very trying winter that created a financial burden for Revere.
No one forecast the historic winter of 2015 that brought our area to a standstill for days on more than one occasion. Mayor Rizzo, who was a stalwart and a symbol of exceptional leadership during the tornado and its aftermath last July, is once again standing up vigorously for this community. We hope Washington is listening to our Mayor and reconsiders the amount of its allocation of funding for the impacts of the historic winter of 2015.
1 comment for “Mayor Stands up for Revere after an Historic Winter”