Several hundred Lincoln County residents attended a meetingThursday night at the Lincoln County Multi-Use Facility in thehopes the government will help fund a storm shelter at theirhomes.

Clifford Galey, county administrator for the state- andfederally-funded “Safe Room” program, gave a brief outline of theprogram, answered questions and handed out application forms.

The program, “A Safe Place To Go,” will reimburse up to 75percent of eligible costs to property owners for the constructionof safe rooms or storm shelters to protect against the dangersposed by extreme winds.

The maximum federal share awarded to any eligible participant inthe program is $3,500 for residential structures and $5,000 forcommunity shelters.

“It will depend on how many apply statewide as to how much weget to spend here,” Galey said.

All applicants who meet the meet the criteria for the programwill share equally in the funds received by the county, he said.Galey has until March 1 to submit all applications to the state forapproval and for the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency todetermine how to distribute the funding among the 82 counties.

The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency and federalofficials announced in mid-January that $6.6 million has been madeavailable to protect Mississippians against tornadoes and otherstorms. This year’s $6.6 million appropriation easily eclipses thetotal of $4.6 million that has been put into the program since itsinception in 2001.

First round funding will go to those who actually suffereddamage from Hurricane Katrina, Galey said.

Application forms must include proof of damage. That proof cancome in a variety of ways, such as insurance claims, contractorbills or even photographs of the damage.

Applications without proof of damage will not be sent to thestate, he said.

“I don’t doubt that everyone in here had damage, but I have tohave proof. This is federal money, and I’m not willing to go tojail for any of you” by passing on applications without proof ofdamage, Galey said.

Janice Brothern, of Loyd Star, said she was appreciative of theprogram and what the government was trying to do for those “wholost their stuff in the hurricane. It’s a good idea.”

She worries, though, that she won’t qualify to participate.

“We didn’t have a lot of damage, but we had some,” she said. “Ihope we qualify.”

Any leftover funding from the first round will be used in asecond round of qualifications that is open to everyone interestedin building a storm shelter, Galey said. Proof of damage will notbe necessary in the second round.

The state and federal money is a direct reimbursement to thehomeowner. Therefore, the shelter must be built before thehomeowner will receive any funding through the program.

However, Galey said applicants should know within a few monthsof turning in their applications how much money they will bereceive toward the construction of a storm shelter and may declineto participate at that time.

Those who decide to continue with the program have until June10, 2007, to complete the storm shelter and still qualify forreimbursement, he said.

John Dunn, of Brookhaven, also complimented the program, but wasskeptical of whether he would receive any financial aid.

“I really don’t believe I’ll be eligible because I didn’t haveany damage,” he said. “I really don’t think in the second roundthere will be enough for those with no damage.”

Regardless, Dunn said he will submit an application and “morethan likely” build a shelter without the funding. If he doesn’tqualify for the program, however, he said he won’t be in any rushto complete it.