Indiana Considering Loans in Place of FEMA-Rejected Aid

Indiana may seek low-interest federal loans for six counties hit by tornadoes and other severe November weather now that federal officials have rejected the state’s disaster aid request.

The state’s Department of Homeland Security said Tuesday that the Federal Emergency Management Agency had denied Indiana’s appeal seeking federal aid for Boone, Daviess, Fountain, Grant, Howard and Tippecanoe counties.

Homeland Security spokesman John Erickson says the state is “very disappointed” by that decision. He says the state cannot appeal FEMA’s aid request rejection a second time.

But Erickson says the state is investigating the possibility of seeking low-interest loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration that could provide some help to the storm-tossed counties.

Indiana had sought FEMA aid for the six counties following severe weather that struck Nov. 17.