III

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. RES. 188

Expressing the sense of the Senate that additional assistance should be

provided to the victims of Hurricane Floyd.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

SEPTEMBER 24, 1999

Mr. EDWARDS (for himself, Mr. HELMS, Mr. GRAHAM, Mr. HOLLINGS, Mr.

WARNER, Mr. ROBB, Mr. LAUTENBERG, Mr. TORRICELLI, Mr. MOYNIHAN, Mr. SCHUMER, Mr. LIEBERMAN, Mr. SARBANES, Mr. SPECTER,

Mr. BIDEN, and Mr. CLELAND) submitted the following resolution; which

was referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works

OCTOBER 1, 1999

Committee discharged; considered, amended, and agreed to

RESOLUTION

Expressing the sense of the Senate that additional assistance

should be provided to the victims of Hurricane Floyd.

Whereas from September 14 through 16, 1999, Hurricane

Floyd menaced most of the southeastern seaboard of the

United States, provoking the largest peacetime evacuation of eastern Florida, the Georgia coast, the South

Carolina coast, and the North Carolina coast;

Whereas the evacuation caused severe disruptions to the businesses and lives of the people of Florida, Georgia, South

Carolina, and North Carolina;
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Whereas in the early morning hours of September 16, 1999,

Hurricane Floyd made landfall at Cape Fear, North

Carolina, dumping up to 18 inches of rain on sections of

North Carolina only days after the heavy rainfall from

Hurricane Dennis and producing the worst recorded

flooding in North Carolina history;

Whereas after making landfall, Hurricane Floyd continued to

move up the eastern seaboard causing flooding, tornadoes, and massive damage in Delaware, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, North Carolina, New

York, and Connecticut;

Whereas portions of Delaware, New Jersey, New York, North

Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Virginia

have been declared to be Federal disaster areas under the

Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.);

Whereas Hurricane Floyd is responsible for the known deaths

of 65 people;

Whereas 45 people are confirmed dead in North Carolina,

with many people still missing;

Whereas 4 people were killed in New Jersey, 2 people in New

York, 6 people in Pennsylvania, 4 people in Virginia, 2

people in Delaware, 1 person in Connecticut, and 1 person in Vermont;

Whereas as the flood waters recede, the death toll is expected

to increase;

Whereas the rainfall resulting from Hurricane Floyd has

caused widespread flooding in North Carolina along the

Tar River, the Neuse River, and the Cape Fear River,

among other rivers, in Connecticut along the Still River,
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and in Virginia along the Nottoway River and the

Blackwater River;

Whereas some of the rivers are expected to remain at flood

stage for more than a week;

Whereas the floods are the worst seen in North Carolina in

80 years;

Whereas the flood level on the Tar River exceeds all previous

records by 9 feet;

Whereas flood waters engulfed cities such as Tarboro, North

Carolina, Franklin, Virginia, Bound Brook, New Jersey,

and Danbury, Connecticut;

Whereas tens of thousands of people have fled to shelters

scattered throughout North Carolina, South Carolina,

New York, New Jersey, and Virginia;

Whereas thousands of people remain isolated, surrounded by

water, in their homes in North Carolina and Virginia;

Whereas approximately 50,000 homes have been affected by

the hurricane, and many of those homes will ultimately

be condemned as uninhabitable;

Whereas water supplies in New Jersey, New York, North

Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia have been severely

disrupted, and, in many cases, wells and private water

systems have been irreparably contaminated;

Whereas hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses

have lost electric power, telephone, and gas service as a

result of Hurricane Floyd;

Whereas there have been road washouts in virtually every

State struck by Hurricane Floyd, including 900 road

washouts in North Carolina alone;
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Whereas many farmers have suffered almost total crop losses;

and

Whereas small and large businesses throughout the region

have been gravely affected: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved,

SECTION 1. NEED FOR ASSISTANCE FOR VICTIMS OF HURRICANE FLOYD.

It is the sense of the Senate that—

(1) the victims of Hurricane Floyd deserve the sympathies of the people of the United States;

(2) the President, the Director of the Federal

Emergency Management Agency, the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of Transportation, the Secretary

of Commerce, and the Director of the Small Business

Administration are to be commended on their efforts to

assist the victims of Hurricane Floyd;

(3) the Governors of Connecticut, Florida, Georgia,

Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, New York, North

Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Virginia are

to be commended for their leadership and coordination

of relief efforts in their States;

(4) the National Guard, the Army, the Marine

Corps, the Navy, and the Coast Guard have provided heroic assistance to the people of the afflicted areas and

are to be commended for their bravery;
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(5) the Red Cross, the Salvation Army, and other

private relief organizations have provided shelter, food,

and comfort to the victims of Hurricane Floyd and are

to be commended for their generosity and invaluable aid;

and

(6) additional assistance needs to be provided to the

victims of Hurricane Floyd.

SEC. 2. FORMS OF ASSISTANCE FOR HURRICANE FLOYD VICTIMS.

To alleviate the conditions faced by the victims of Hurricane Floyd, it is the sense of the Senate that the President

should—

(1) work with Congress to provide necessary funds

for—

(A) disaster relief administered by the Federal

Emergency Management Agency;

(B) disaster relief administered by the Department of Agriculture;

(C) disaster relief administered by the Department of Commerce;

(D) disaster relief administered by the Department of Transportation;

(E) disaster relief administered by the Small

Business Administration; and
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(F) any other disaster relief needed to help rebuild damaged homes, provide for clean water, renourish damaged beaches and protective dunes, and

restore electric power; and

(2) prepare and submit to Congress a report that

analyzes the feasibility and cost of implementing a program to provide disaster assistance to the victims of

Hurricane Floyd, including assistance in the form of—

(A) direct economic assistance to agricultural

producers, small businesses, and displaced persons;

(B) an expanded loan and debt restructuring

program;

(C) cleanup of environmental damage;

(D) small business assistance;

(E) repair or reconstruction of private homes;

(F) repair or reconstruction of highways,

roads, and trails;

(G) provision of safe and adequate water supplies; and

(H) restoration of essential utility services such

as electric power, telephone, and gas service.

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