The White House has officially declared the August 24 Napa earthquake and its subsequent aftershocks a major disaster and federal funds will therefore be available to aid in the cleanup.
Per the White House memo:
The President today declared a major disaster exists in the State of California and ordered federal aid to supplement state, tribal, and local recovery efforts in the area affected by an earthquake during the period of August 24 to September 7, 2014.Federal funding is available to state, tribal, and eligible local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work and the repair or replacement of facilities damaged by the earthquake in the counties of Napa and Solano.
As KRON 4 reports, even though no amount has been announced, "a preliminary assessment by the governor’s office found $87 million in earthquake costs that could be eligible for federal reimbursement."
In other earthquake news, the overall damage estimate for Napa County has gone down to $400 million from some initial estimates closer to $1 billion. And damages in the wine industry alone are being estimated at $80 million, down from initial (much crazier) estimates. One winery, however, deemed the "most devastating circumstance," suffered an $8 million loss, as ABC 7 reports.
