Atlanta sues FEMA over flood money

“According to the National Weather Service, at the peak of the event, approximately 10 to 20 inches of rain occurred in less than 24 hours,” the lawsuit states.

It killed 10 Georgians, damaged tens of thousands of structures and caused hundreds of millions of dollars in damage. President Barack Obama declared it a major disaster, making several counties eligible for disaster relief. This included Fulton, in which the majority of Atlanta is located.

The Robert M. Clayton Water Reclamation Center in Atlanta was “severely damaged” by flooding, according to the complaint: “Substantial portions of the plant were submerged. »

This led to untreated sewage flowing into the Chattahoochee River.

As part of the repairs and cleanup, workers replaced eight ultraviolet disinfection units, reducing fecal bacteria to acceptable levels by November 2009. Atlanta requested reimbursement of $1.2 million, the cost of these emergency spare parts.

But a FEMA official offered less than $37,000, saying he couldn’t find documentation of all the parts replaced, according to the lawsuit. Atlanta says these invoices were attached to the original request.

FEMA’s response to another appeal in 2014 reduced the amount to just $200.61.

The city claims FEMA didn’t even mention the alleged missed deadline until 2017 and often ignored deadlines or failed to respond.

In May 2018, the agency again refused to consider Atlanta’s appeal, leading to the current lawsuit. The city wants the court to order a review of its appeals and grant unspecified “other relief.”

FEMA declined to comment on the pending litigation.