|
OWENS
REQUESTS $500 MILLION FOR
CARIBBEAN HURRICANE RELIEF
Washington D.C.- Congressman Major R. Owens called on President George
Bush to allocate $500 million for hurricane relief for the devastated Caribbean
region and to appoint a "Coordinator of Caribbean Hurricane Relief"
who would operate within FEMA and oversee the hurricane relief for the
islands decimated by hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne. The $500
million request would be set aside from part of a $7.1 billion hurricane relief
emergency supplemental appropriation for areas hit hard by these natural
disasters.
According to Owens, "My office will continue
to work with U.S. agencies to bring critical resources to this region."
So far, Congressman Owens has worked with USAID and FEMA to secure several
million dollars in Hurricane relief for Grenada, Haiti and other parts of the
region.
For example, on the small island of Grenada, sustained winds of 100 miles per
hour destroyed more than ninety percent of that country's infrastructure.
Because government buildings and official records were destroyed in Grenada,
this small nation's situation is particularly acute and dire. "We must
appoint a Coordinator through FEMA who will work with Caribbean governments to
restore and rebuild their overall infrastructure," stated Owens.
"Providing $500 million to the region will help replace crops, provide fresh
food and water and restart the economy".
Congressman Owens is also introducing a Resolution
which requests the Secretary of Homeland Security to make nationals of Haiti and
Grenada eligible for Temporary Protected Status (TPS). "I will continue to
fight for additional initiatives to provide critical assistance to the
Caribbean," vowed Owens.
###
| 