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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release December 28A 2000

           PRESIDENT CLINTON DECLARES AN EMERGENCY EXISTS IN
                         THE STATE OF ARKANSAS

     President Clinton today declared an emergency exists in the State

of Arkansas and ordered federal aid to supplement state and local recovery efforts in the area struck by a severe winter ice storm beginning on December 12, 2000, and continuing.

President Clinton's action authorizes FEMA to coordinate all disaster relief efforts which have the purpose of alleviating the hardship and suffering caused by the emergency on the local population, and to provide appropriate assistance for required emergency measures, authorized under Title V of the Stafford Act, to save lives, protect property and public health and safety, or to lessen or avert the threat of a catastrophe in the counties of Arkansas, Benton, Bradley, Calhoun, Clark, Cleveland, Columbia, Crawford, Crittenden, Cross, Dallas, Desha, Drew, Faulkner, Franklin, Garland, Grant, Hot Spring, Howard, Hempstead, Jackson, Jefferson, Johnson, Lafayette, Lee, Lincoln, Little River, Logan, Lonoke, Madison, Miller, Mississippi, Monroe, Montgomery, Nevada, Ouachita, Perry, Pike, Polk, Poinsett, Prairie, Pulaski, St. Francis, Saline, Scott, Sebastian, Sevier, Washington, White, Woodruff, Union, and Yell.

Specifically, FEMA is authorized to identify, mobilize, and provide at its discretion, equipment and resources necessary to alleviate the impacts of the emergency. Assistance for debris removal (Category A) and emergency protective measures (Category B) will be provided at 75 percent Federal funding.

James L. Witt, Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), named Joe Bray as the Federal Coordinating Officer for Federal recovery operations in the affected area.

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