Tuesday, March 14, 2006
Contact: Spence Jackson, 573-751-0290
Blunt Issues Third Executive Order to Help with Storm Cleanup
JEFFERSON CITY–Gov. Matt Blunt has issued a third executive order to help local Missouri communities’ cleanup damage caused by violent weekend storms by allowing the director of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to grant waivers to help expedite recovery efforts.
“The full extent of the damage caused by these violent storms is not yet known,” Blunt said. “Missouri communities started picking up the pieces soon after the storms passed and this order will ensure their recovery efforts are not hampered. I have instructed Director Doyle Childers to ensure the department is a help, not a hindrance to local officials.”
DNR will have the discretion to waive laws and rules pertaining to waste disposal and open burning to eliminate debris. Past governors have given the agency the same authority after damaging storms moved through the state.
Blunt issued two executive orders Monday morning declaring the state a natural disaster area and authorizing the use of the Missouri National Guard in recovery efforts as needed. Blunt toured Nixa Monday afternoon and saw the storms devastation firsthand. At his request, Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder toured Perry County.
Blunt activated the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) over the weekend to assist local law enforcement and first responders who tracked the storms and helped Missourians in need. At least nine deaths have been confirmed, and SEMA has received numerous reports of injuries and damage to homes and property throughout the state.
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