Officials from the Illinois Emergency Management Agency and Office of Homeland Security (IEMA-OHS) are expected to arrive in McHenry County next week to assess damage and flooding from storms that took place in mid-August, authorities said.
These preliminary damage assessment (PDA) teams will go door-to-door starting Wednesday, Sept. 3, through Sunday, Sept. 7, IEMA officials said.
The teams from IEMA and IEMA-OHS are expected to be joined by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), and local emergency management personnel.
The Village of Cary declared a state of emergency after severe thunderstorms resulted in significant damage affecting homes, businesses and roadways, leaving the fire department overwhelmed with calls.
Two strong thunderstorms moved through the Cary, Oakwood Hills and Trout Valley areas in the evening of Saturday, August 16, according to Cary Fire Protection District Public Information Officer Alex Vucha.
The storms produced nearly 70 weather-related calls for service within just five hours.
The storms resulted in significant damage, particularly in and around downtown Cary, with widespread wind destruction affecting homes, businesses, and roadways.
Vucha said a third storm moved through overnight into Sunday, August 19, creating additional localized flooding but without the strong winds of the earlier storms.
Firefighters handled close to 100 storm-related calls between Saturday evening into Sunday morning. No weather-related injuries were reported.
Vucha said firefighters responded primarily to emergencies that included downed power lines, natural gas equipment damage, and other hazardous conditions.
Calls for downed wires continued through the weekend between August 16 and August 19.
Cary Deputy Fire Chief Mark Pelletreau, who oversaw many of the overnight calls, said firefighters handled an “extraordinary workload” as multiple storms moved through the fire district’s coverage area.
The damage assessment teams will be surveying details of damage to homes and possessions, which could include HVAC and water heaters, so that IEMA can pursue all potential avenues of assistance.
“Our joint damage assessment teams are working diligently to document the full scope of storm damage, including essential household systems such as HVAC units and water heaters,” said IEMA-OHS Acting Director Theodore (Ted) Berger.
“While there is no single dollar amount that guarantees a federal disaster declaration for Individual Assistance, FEMA evaluates several factors, including the level of uninsured losses and the capacity of local resources to support recovery. Our priority is to assess as many homes as possible to help determine if federal assistance is available to help families and individuals in the recovery process,” he said.
Meeting with the damage assessment crews is important, but IEMA-OHS cautions residents to be wary of scam artists who prey upon storm survivors.
In that regard, officials will have photo identification, will not enter homes, and will not use contractors or ask for payment for anything during the visit.
In addition, officials said multiple teams will be working across multiple counties, and bilingual staff will be present for those in need.
They added that data collection is for local municipalities to qualify for assistance, so people who do not receive a visit should not be concerned, and residents are urged to contact their homeowners or rental insurance to determine the amount of coverage they receive from the storm.