Province activates disaster recovery program after Brantford flooding
Brantford was placed in a state of emergency last week
The province announced today that it is activating a disaster recovery program in the wake of historic flooding in Brantford last week.
Provincial Minister of Municipal Affairs Bill Mauro told CBC News today that the program – dubbed the Disaster Recovery Assistance for Ontarians program — is being activated in areas along the Grand River where homes were damaged by floodwater.
"What it will mean is that people will now have available to them a program into which they can apply that if they're deemed eligible, will provide them some financial support for the essentials that are necessary for them to inhabit their homes," Mauro told CBC Kitchener's The Morning Edition.
The province says affected individuals, small businesses and not-for-profit organizations that have experienced property damage or loss because of the disaster may be eligible to receive help with emergency and recovery expenses.
The program provides reimbursement of expenses incurred but may also offer interim payments to those who need upfront help, the province said in a news release.
For more information and detailed program guidelines, visit ontario.ca/DisasterAssistance or call 1-844-780-8925.
Brantford was placed in a state of emergency last week, with nearly 5,000 people in 2,200 homes surrounding the Grand River placed under a temporary evacuation order.
The director of engineering at the Grand River Conservation Authority says the flooding was caused, at least in part, by an ice jam along the river.