About 1,200 linemen working to restore power to county; 2,000 still in the dark as of Sunday afternoon

Alabama Power Company has 1,200 linemen working to bring light and heat back to Selma, Mayor James Perkins Jr. said Sunday.

“That’s probably 600 or 700 trucks working to restore power,” Perkins said at a Sunday afternoon news conference. “That’s a lot of manpower, and they were still bringing people in to do this work. We are now down to about 2,000 people without power.”

Most streets have been cleared, but sightseers are an obstacle to progress, Perkins said. “We still have too many people traveling in areas where the utility companies are working,” Perkins said. “We pulled all of the voluntary services for clean up out of the utility work areas today at the request of Alabama Power. They have so many trucks in the area. Now we have too many pedestrian cars in those areas. We are asking people to stay out of those areas.”

Perkins said the city is “doing what they can, but there is nothing firm yet” to address temporary housing. “Anything like that will be handled by FEMA and worked through the EMA office,” Perkins said. “We really don’t have a lot of people who don’t have shelter over their heads. I have not heard of anyone that doesn’t have a place to stay.”

Roads in the cemeteries have been cleared, but Perkins asked people to stay out of the cemeteries for now.

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Debris is being placed at curbs throughout the city, but the city will have to bid out removal of the debris to an outside company. Meanwhile, Perkins urged citizens not to mix household garbage with storm debris because that will make the debris pile ineligible to be disposed of in the inert landfill. Household garbage should be placed in a garbage can as usual so it can be picked up by Martin Environmental, the company that holds the city garbage contract.

As reported in the Selma Sun, the federal government declared Dallas and Autauga counties disaster areas Sunday morning. Dallas County EMA Director Toya Stiles-Crusoe said the declaration clears the way for individuals and public entities to apply for FEMA help.

There is a 60-day registration period for citizens to register, according to Crusoe. Call 1-800-621-3362 or download the FEMA app. Perkins said the declaration “shows that people in Washington really do understand how critical things are here.”

Regional EMA Director Don Hartley said FEMA will establish a disaster relief center where people can talk to a FEMA representative. Disaster assistance “does not make you whole. It doesn’t replace your home as it was before. It makes your home livable,” Hartley said. “If you have insurance and you may be under insured, it may help there, too.”