Birmingham, AL – Alabama communities battered by the April tornadoes are picking up storm debris and starting to rebuild, but the emotional recovery is continuing.
The Alabama Department of Mental Health, the Federal Emergency Management Agency and other agencies say they are reactivating a program called Project Rebound, which provides free crisis counseling after a disaster.
The federally funded program offers services including a toll-free hotline telephone number, community outreach and educational services. It also helps with the hiring of additional workers to staff the state's counseling centers for an extended period.
The tornadoes killed almost 240 people statewide and injured many more, leveling entire communities in some places. Thousands of homes and businesses were destroyed, and insurance estimates show the twisters could become the state's most expensive natural disaster ever.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)