Connecticut residents receive SBA loans for multiple disasters

12/2/2011

Connecticut businesses and homeowners are receiving SBA loan assistance to aid in the recovery from Tropical Storm Irene and a snowstorm that occurred on October 29th and 30th, the Hartford Business Journal reports.

The SBA supplied 264 loans worth $8.8 million for Irene recovery. Specifically, $8.1 million was distributed to homeowners, while 13 businesses received a combined $731,600.

Furthermore, food kitchens, homeless shelters, museums, libraries, colleges and other private nonprofits are eligible for up to $2 million in loans in counties most affected by the snow - Fairfield, Hartford, Litchfield, Middlesex, New Haven, Tolland and Windham. The funds are to be used to replace real estate, machinery and equipment, inventory and other business assets that were harmed or destroyed.

Some residents were left without power for as long as 11 days following the snowstorm, primarily due to the state's largest utility company, Connecticut Light & Power's, inability to have enough repair crews in place prior to the storm, The Associated Press reports.

CL&P had a response plan that predicted a maximum of 100,000 outages, however at least 3 million homes and businesses were left without power.