By BILLY TOWNSEND
of The Tampa Tribune

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has now opened a disaster recovery center within the low income neighborhoods of Lady Lake that suffered enormous damage in Friday morning’s tornadoes.

That center opened this morning, according to the Lake County Emergency Operations Center.

It’s the third such center within the affected areas of Central Florida. The centers are designed to serve as long-term needs clearinghouses, where residents who have lost a home or need other long-term assistance can look for help in rebuilding a life.

FEMA’s was largely absent in the hard hit areas of Lady Lake Sunday and Monday, despite the fact that a recovery center had opened several miles away in the massive, affluent Villages development.

Lady Lake Town Manager Bill Vance makes his rounds through the Lake County Town as he checks up on residents today. KELVIN MA/Tribune photo

By BILLY TOWNSEND
The Tampa Tribune

LADY LAKE – The juxtaposition is striking.

In the heart of The Villages development in Sumter County, a fleet of heated campers from insurance companies, the state and FEMA, idle in the parking lot of Laurel Manor, a kind of manufactured town center.

Residents, mostly from The Villages, carry official papers into the palatial atrium of the building, where FEMA representatives and other disaster relief officials wait for them. Just off the main hall, people are working at a gym facility. A bocce court in the parking lot is full with people playing their regular Monday game.

About eight miles away, in Lake County, on the shattered, mobile home-lined streets that saw Lady Lake’s worst storm damage, Town Manager Bill Vance strides briskly, handing out printed updates to residents there.

One paragraph reads: “Town pursuing more and significant FEMA registration resources to place in our tornado damaged neighborhoods. FEMA agents also setting up an office in Lady Lake but currently only FEMA assistance/registration office is at Laurel Manor Rec. Facility – Villages.”

It’s 2 p.m. And the information is a little out of date. Vance said he has been told FEMA and other officials will set up a disaster relief center amid the damaged neighborhoods – by 11 a.m. Tuesday.

It is important to note that private and religious groups and local government have been working through these Lady Lake neighborhoods since the storms hit Friday. There is ample food and supplies. People’s most immediate needs are being met, and cleanup is proceeding.

But as the initial chaos fades, residents looking for longterm assistance – most of whom are low income or elderly or both – must, for now, find a car or a ride to the Villages; if they even know the disaster recovery center is there.

Vance said he has been told there are 50 FEMA workers fanning out through the damaged neighborhoods.

“But I can’t brag on that,” he said, “because I haven’t seen it.”

One volunteer from Leesburg, Terri Folker, who has worked the streets behind the demolished Lady Lake Church of God since Sunday, said late Monday morning she just had seen her first FEMA worker. That worker promised a greater presence later in the day.

A list of addresses served at the Villages recovery center showed few of the dozens of people who have sought help since the center opened Sunday came from Lady Lake.

A State Farm insurance representative on site said virtually none of his company’s claims have come from Lady Lake. Given the nature of the homes that were destroyed – many were mobile homes – it’s unlikely many were insured, he said. Insurance for a mobile home is expensive and difficult to get, he said.

Across Lake County, at the similarly hard hit Lake Mack, there is an on-site recovery center.

The centers are designed to serve as a kind of clearinghouse for the needs of people suffering the aftermath of the storm.

For now, Vance said, the town of Lady Lake is taking that role for its affected citizens. Residents with questions can call (352) 343-9442, ext. 5039. He is expecting FEMA to help soon.

“Our number one priority is our citizens,” Vance said. “They have a variety of needs – housing, medical, insurance.”

Asked about FEMA’s presence at The Villages, he beckoned to the obliterated homes on either side of Quail Street and the Red Cross vehicle moving slowly up and down, providing meals.

“They need to be here. That’s why the Red Cross is here,” he said. “The Red Cross is doing a great job.”

Reporter Billy Townsend can be reached at (863) 284-1409 or .

News Channel 8

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Residents in tornado-ravaged Florida continue the massive cleanup effort. Blue tarps are visible all over the area as residents try and salvage property.

The National Weather Service now confirms three tornadoes are responsible for the massive damage.

20 people died in the pre-dawn storms Friday and as many as 1300 homes and businesses were damaged in the storms.

President Bush declared a state of emergency in Sumter, Lake, Volusia and Seminole counties on Saturday.

Residents impacted by the twisters can now apply for federal aid and loans.

Governor Charlie Crist also visited one of the worst hit areas Lady Lake and offered support local residents.

From THE ASSOCIATED PRESS:

MIAMI - A moment of silence was held shortly before Sunday’s Super Bowl to honor the 20 central Florida residents who died last week after a series of tornadoes hit the area.

The storms struck early Friday morning. According to some estimates, there were hundreds of damaged buildings and at least $68 million dollars in damage.

The situation in central Florida prompted Governor Crist to cancel plans he had to attend the Super Bowl. Crist watched the game in Tallahassee with firefighters.

Billy Joel and Marlee Matlin performed the national anthem immediately after the moment of silence.

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