FEMA Provides &#36;320M in Hurricane Aid
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The Federal Emergency Management Agency has handled nearly 600,000 applications for help in the wake of three damaging hurricanes, providing more than &#36;320 million in assistance, the agency reported Thursday.
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The United States dispatched disaster specialists and pledged an initial &#36;15 million Monday to Asian countries struck by a massive earthquake and tsunamis.
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US property and casualty insurers have paid out $21.3 billion for eight catastrophes damage, including hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne, according to the data of the Jersey-based Insurance Services Office Inc.
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Lawmakers scrambled to approve a &#36;14 billion package to aid hurricane and drought victims Thursday, driven by warnings that relief money was running out and a need to pass legislation before the planned departure of Congress at the end of this week for the election.
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Natural disasters will cost insurers a record &#36;35 billion this year, after hurricanes lashed the Caribbean and southeastern United States and a record 10 typhoons soaked Japan in events seen as linked to global warming, climate experts said on Wednesday.
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The United States expects to provide  an initial $15 million in aid for victims of the devastating  tsunami in Asia and has already released $400,000, the  assistant administrator of the U.S. Agency for International  Development said Monday.
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Governments and registered aid organizations have so far pledged more than &#36;1.5 billion to aid victims of the Dec. 26 earthquake and tsunami. In addition, the World Bank and the Asian Bank of Development have pledged more than &#36;500 million, bringing the total for relief and reconstruction aid to more than &#36;2 billion, according to the United Nations. A look at major government pledges:
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President Bush signed disaster aid to help hurricane victims in Florida and other states rebuild from hurricanes Charley, Frances, Jeanne and Ivan.
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The United States dispatched disaster teams Monday and prepared an initial &#36;15 million aid package to the Asian countries hit by a massive earthquake and tsunamis. U.S. officials were seeking to contact hundreds of Americans who remain unaccounted for in the region.
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The United Nations will launch a global appeal for &#36;30 million in emergency aid to help Haiti recover from floods that killed hundreds of people, the executive director of UNICEF said on Wednesday on a visit to the impoverished Caribbean nation.
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From antibiotics to clothes to cash &#151; lots of it &#151; U.S.-based relief groups report an overwhelming response from donors moved by the devastation of the Indian Ocean tsunami, with more than &#36;200 million raised as of Tuesday. One charity said online pledges were coming in at the rate of &#36;100,000 an hour.
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Insurance payments to victims of Hurricane Frances are expected to reach &#36;4.4 billion, making it the fourth most costly storm in U.S. history, an insurance industry group said on Thursday.
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CRAWFORD, Texas  - President Bush, under pressure  over the pace and size of American aid to Asian tsunami  victims, dramatically raised U.S. assistance to the region on  Friday to $350 million from $35 million.
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The United Nations on Friday asked wealthy nations to donate an extra &#36;59 million in aid to help about 400,000 people in Grenada and Haiti recover from a recent wave of storms and flooding.
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President Bush plans to ask Congress on Monday to rush more than &#36;2 billion in additional aid to hurricane-battered Florida, administration officials said on Friday.
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The United States will fulfill its pledge of &#36;350 million in tsunami relief and add more if necessary to a total that is "more than generous," Secretary of State Colin Powell said Thursday.
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The Federal Emergency Management Agency has changed its policy and will provide some reimbursement for homeowners who spent their own money to elevate hurricane-damaged houses above flood level.