COLUMBUS – Since Ohio can experience the most destructive of tornadoes, the state is willing to help homeowners with the cost of building tornado shelters or “safe rooms” inside or outside their houses.
The Ohio Emergency Management Agency’s Ohio Safe Room Rebate Program is again accepting applications for rebates for the purchase and construction or installation of tornado safe rooms, said Steve Ferryman, Ohio EMA mitigation branch chief.
“The entire state of Ohio is at risk of an EF5 tornado, which produces 250 mile per hour winds capable of destroying most structures. A safe room is built to withstand these winds and resulting airborne debris and provides near absolute protection for occupants,” he said.
Homeowners selected for the program are eligible for a rebate of up to 75 percent of the cost of building or installing a safe room up to a maximum of $4,875, Ferryman said.
Ferryman says a safe room is an extreme-wind shelter or space that can be constructed in a basement, beneath a concrete slab or garage floor or in an interior room on the first floor. It can also be buried in the yard or be a stand-alone structure near the home.
Funding for the rebate program is through a partnership with the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Hazard Mitigation Assistance grant programs so safe rooms must meet FEMA requirements.