James Lee Witt

Rep. Anthony C. Beilenson (D-Woodland Hills) called Tuesday for the federal government to reverse its recent decision not to assist West Valley communities in disasters such as flooding and mudslides resulting from last year's wildfires. The Federal Emergency Management Agency, according to Beilenson, maintains that the eligibility period for disaster assistance has passed.

UCLA has received $5.2 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to help repair the campus' landmark Royce Hall, bringing the total amount of federal aid for the earthquake-damaged building to $37 million. In a conference call with UCLA Chancellor Charles Young on Tuesday, Vice President Al Gore announced the grant to help pay for rebuilding the well-known brick and terra cotta structure, whose towers were cracked during the 1994 Northridge quake.

Natural disasters are getting more frequent and more severe, Federal Emergency Management Agency Director James Lee Witt said Tuesday, preaching a gospel of preparation and prevention for Americans. "We are trying to change the landscape of America . . . to make our communities more disaster resistant," said Witt. Some communities have passed ordinances blocking development in wetlands and other dangerous areas, he said, but "we have a long way to go."

Los Angeles Unified School District officials expressed concern Monday that the federal government has not yet funded many of the largest repair projects for schools damaged by the Northridge quake. In all, 5,400 projects have been approved or completed at a cost of $70 million. But the 1,000 remaining include 125 seriously damaged buildings that could cost an estimated $60 million more to repair. Most are in the San Fernando Valley; none currently house students.

A visit to Fillmore by the director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency was canceled Wednesday, the second time in the last week that James Lee Witt has had to change plans to survey the quake-damaged city. Witt was scheduled to tour downtown Fillmore but instead was dispatched to Japan to help officials there in the aftermath of the earthquake that struck the city of Kobe.

Acting on the behalf of nearly 1,000 earthquake victims--most in the San Fernando Valley--the Board of Supervisors Tuesday voted to send a letter to the director of FEMA to extend the federal housing assistance program, which is scheduled to expire April 17. Through the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the program pays rent for homeowners while they repair their homes or condominiums damaged in the January 1994 Northridge earthquake.

Vice President Al Gore on Thursday announced a three-agency effort to expand the government's Weather Radio to include all types of disaster warnings and to increase coverage to 95% of Americans. The 350-station National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Weather Radio network now covers about 75% of the population. The announcement came in the wake of devastating Palm Sunday tornadoes that claimed at least 43 lives in Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee and the Carolinas.

About 2,000 homeowners still awaiting final earthquake repairs on their homes just received a six-month extension on emergency rental assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Rep. Anthony C. Beilenson (D-Woodland Hills), who represents parts of Thousand Oaks, on Monday announced approval of a request he and other congressmen made to FEMA Director James Lee Witt. FEMA will extend the deadline from July 17 until Jan. 17, 1996, officials said.

Storms, tornadoes and floods cost the federal government more than $1.38 billion this year in disaster relief, but that was a bargain compared to previous years. The most expensive 1997 disaster was spring flooding in the Upper Midwest, costing $466.7 million. By contrast, the Federal Emergency Management Agency spent $5.5 billion on the 1994 Northridge earthquake. Last year, FEMA spent $1.7 billion total.

Los Angeles, the state of California and the nation as a whole have experienced dramatic declines in the number of structural fires--businesses and homes--since 1980. That's the good news to report now, during National Fire Prevention Week. But the United States still lags far behind other industrialized nations in nearly all fire categories. This information comes from the U.S.