FEMA awards $15.7 million to Cedar Rapids for flood recovery

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has awarded $15.7 million to Cedar Rapids to pay for flood recovery work and demolition of the Sinclair meatpacking plant.

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said FEMA obligates the funding to the state, which then reimburses the city for eligible expenses.

The work qualifying for the public assistance grants are:

• $5.5 million for the demolition of 11 buildings on the city-owned Sinclair meatpacking plant site, which flooded and then burned. It is being removed as an immediate threat to public health and safety.

• $7.9 million to remove 402 flooded buildings and structures in northwest Cedar Rapids.

• $2.3 million to reimburse the city for emergency protective measures taken at the Water Pollution Control Facility following the flood. The work included sludge hauling, temporary repairs to the existing incinerator and construction of a shell around the replacement facility.