Katrina Fund Helps Mississippi with Other Disaster Costs

Mississippi officials said the state budget is in good shape to survive this spring’s twin natural disasters of tornadoes and river flooding.

The state still has tens of millions of dollars set aside from Hurricane Katrina recovery, and top lawmakers say that cash is providing a cushion that could help cover the recovery expenses from the latest disasters. It could be months before the tab is calculated.

Other states such as Missouri and Alabama anticipate budget problems because of massive tornadoes that struck in the past couple of months.

Mike Womack, director of the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency, said recovery from big disasters typically takes more than a single year, so the expenses are spread out over multiple budget cycles.