Haslam Requests SBA Assistance for Disaster Recovery

Low-Interest Loans Could Aid Residents in Stewart and Surrounding Counties

NASHVILLE – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam has requested assistance from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to help individuals and businesses in Stewart County, and its contiguous counties, recover from the severe storms and flash flooding that occurred on April 26, 2013.

The additional Tennessee counties that would be eligible for SBA loans are Benton, Henry, Houston and Montgomery as damage to homes and businesses occurred in multiple locations.
A joint Tennessee Emergency Management Agency (TEMA) and SBA damage survey shows more than 72 homes and businesses in Stewart County sustained uninsured losses of 40 percent, or more, of their estimated pre-disaster fair market value.
 
“An SBA declaration will make needed assistance available that can help Tennesseans in these communities put their lives and businesses back together,” Haslam said.
 
The damage survey in Stewart County identified 40 homes with major damage and 19 homes with minor damage. There were eight businesses identified with major damage and two businesses with minor damage.  Damage assessment teams also identified three other structures in Stewart County with major damage.
 
The SBA provides low interest disaster loans to homeowners, renters, businesses of all sizes, and private, non-profit organizations to repair or replace real estate, personal property, machinery and equipment, inventory and business assets that have been damaged or destroyed in a declared disaster.
From April 26, to April 28, 2013, a severe weather front brought heavy precipitation into middle Tennessee and parts of west and east Tennessee. The National Weather Service (NWS) reported heavy rainfall totals of up to six inches that resulted in localized flash flooding.