1/29/09

Suburban News

Khalila Perrin

*District officials reported $1.1 million in losses from the September 14 windstorm but the federal agency only will reimburse $445,000.

Relief is on the way for Columbus City Schools, though not as much as officials had hoped.

After severe winds from the remnants of Hurricane Ike wreaked havoc in Central Ohio Sept. 14, district officials reported $1.1 million in damages and subsequent labor costs to the Federal Emergency Management Agency for reimbursement.

The district will receive about $245,000 from FEMA for general expenses incurred, Chief Operating Officer, Larry Hoskins told members of the district’s Audit and Accountability committee Thursday, Jan. 22.

The district’s Food Service Department will receive a separate reimbursement of $200,000, Food Service Director Joe Brown told the committee.

The district’s Food Service Department alone reported $511,461 in lost revenue and expenses related to the storm, which caused power outages throughout the region. The outage shuttered all of the district’s schools Sept. 15-18, 2008. Eleven schools also remained closed through Sept. 19.

The district reported $268,621 in lost productivity. The figure represents wage and benefits costs.

Officials also reported $67,756 in food and milk that had to be disposed of because of the outage, along with nearly $700 in paper products and other materials.

In terms of storm-related expenses outside of the food service department, “Most of it was labor with folks having to come in and clean after the storm,” Hoskins said in October.

Officials aren’t sure when the reimbursement funds will roll in.

“We’re just happy to receive them,” said Robyn Essman, the district’s executive budget manager.

“The hope is we will get it in this fiscal year,” Hoskins added.