Last Friday FEMA authorized the use of federal funds to help with firefighting costs for the Happy Jack Fire burning in Laramie County, Wyoming, near the city of Cheyenne.
FEMA Region 8 Administrator Nancy Dragani approved the state’s request for a federal Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) after receiving the request this afternoon and determining that the fire threatened such destruction that it would constitute a major disaster.
At the time of the request, the Happy Jack Fire had burned more than 4000 acres and was threatening homes in and around Cheyenne, Wyoming. The fire is also threatening 380 other structures including buildings, infrastructure, utilities, equipment and a watershed in the area. Mandatory evacuations are underway for approximately 50 homes.
The authorization makes FEMA funding available to pay 75 percent of the state’s eligible firefighting costs under an approved grant for managing, mitigating and controlling designated fires. These grants do not provide assistance to individual home or business owners and do not cover other infrastructure damage caused by the fire.
Fire Management Assistance Grants are provided through the President’s Disaster Relief Fund and are made available by FEMA to assist in fighting fires that threaten to cause a major disaster. Eligible items can include expenses for field camps; equipment use, repair and replacement; mobilization and demobilization activities; and tools, materials and supplies.
With the FMAG authorization, additional funding is made available through the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) Post Fire for the mitigation of wildfire and related hazards, such as flood after fire or erosion. Some eligible wildfire project types include defensible space measures, ignition-resistant construction, and hazardous fuels reduction.
