Plans for housing displaced flooding victims are under way, as representatives of the Federal Emergency Management Agency met with local officials Thursday to begin determining where a multitude of FEMA housing trailers will be set up when they begin to arrive in the near future.
Will Fiorini, a housing specialist with FEMA, met with local officials to begin the "feeling-out" process for the placement of what likely will be several large manufactured housing developments constructed quickly by FEMA.
"We're going to be looking at permitting, requirements for insulation, blocking, strapping, winterization, hauling and placement within the city limits or in the county," Fiorini said.
The units range from one to three bedrooms, and range in size from 12 feet by 40 feet to 14 feet by 60 feet.
"The family composition and the need will determine what type of housing that those folks would receive," Fiorini said. People must register with FEMA to be eligible.
After they register, FEMA will inspect the primary home and determine a damage amount. If that amount meets guidelines, they will then be placed in FEMA's temporary housing database and interviewed.
"If we determine that applicant will be best suited by receiving a FEMA temporary housing unit, we can provide it," Fiorini said.
The agency will give heavy consideration to placing units on the homeowners' residential properties outside the 100-year flood plain, if they have water, sewer and electricity that are available and working, and a FEMA site inspector approves it. That way, people who are repairing their homes but cannot yet live in them can still live on their own property in their own community.
He said FEMA is not going to place units within the 100-year flood plain if at all possible.
The goal is to establish some stabilization and continuity for families as school begins and winter approaches, but FEMA must also be mindful of some of this area's fairly unique environmental factors, such as minus 40 degree temperatures.
The homes will be placed on blocks, Fiorini said, but be anchored into the ground and skirted.
Officials from Burlington, Minot and Ward County all pledged to work with FEMA on streamlining inspection and permitting issues once the homes begin to come in.
FEMA-established commercial sites can be as large as 150 or 200 housing units, according to Fiorini. Maintenance contracts will be in place, so a call to an 800 number will result in someone showing up to service the unit, he added.
When delivery of the units begins, FEMA will handle hooking up to the existing infrastructure, Fiorini said. In the likely case that FEMA has to set up entire mobile communities, the community will only be required to make infrastructure available.
The temporary housing mission lasts 18 months, during which time FEMA will assist those residents in finding permanent housing solutions.
In the meantime, FEMA and local officials both said they would attempt to find locations as close to people's original communities as possible, to try to avoid issues like children not being close to their school districts.
FEMA is also consulting with electrical company officials, as the electric heat in the housing units will require a large load to be carried to any locations where the communities will be established.
