Digital Extra

The news for some local areas of was outright good: the oil apparently never reached the Narrow River in Narragansett and South Kingstown, or the Great Salt Pond on Block Island.

Elsewhere, the initially bad news is getting better: oil is steadily disappearing, either through dispersion or evaporation, from contaminated areas -- and, according to DEM Director Timothy Keeney, "90 percent of all the oil that spilled is gone."

Perhaps most important, however, was the information on filing claims and obtaining financial assistance that the governor offered for those whose livelihoods and businesses have been affected by the spill.

To begin with, said Marcel Valois of the state's Economic Development Corporation, those who might be eligible for employment benefits will find that additional staff is being added to process unemployment claims at the Oliver Stedman Government Center on Route 1 in Wakefield.

He also said the state will set up a Business Recovery Office at the center that will offer "direct assistance," primarily in the form of loans up to $25,000. He said the office could begin awarding some loans as soon as tomorrow if all goes well.

The toll-free telephone number for the recovery office 1-800-261-2071.

Robert Loddo of the federal Small Business Administration was on hand to say that SBA will have disaster loans available of up to $1.5 million, at 4 percent interest and with a 30-year repayment term.

The goal of the emergency loans, he said, is "to replace the working capital of businesses that have been affected" by the oil spill. His staff may be on hand as early as tomorrow at the Stedman Center.

In addition to government assistance, Valois pointed out that claims for damages can be filed with Water Quality Insurance Syndicate, the insurance company for the owners of the North Cape.

Valois stressed that it is crucial that anyone who thinks he has lost income, property or anything else of monetary value because of the spill to file a claim as soon as possible with the insurance company.

The number for the company is 1-800-995-4045.

He said adjusters from the company have set up an office at the Holiday Inn on Route 1, and will begin meeting with claimants tomorrow.

Valois said that insurance company representatives have told state officials that once a claim has been decided in someone's favor, "cash will be in your hand in a day or two."

Valois noted that any loans or other assistance people get from the state or the federal government "does not affect your claim with the insurer."

Almond added that although those eligible for unemployment benefits can obtain a maximum of only 60 percent of their normal salaries, the remaining 40 percent of lost salary constitutes a claim that can be lodged with the insurance company.

The meeting in the Corless Auditorium at the Bay Campus began with a barrage of complaints and questions from private citizens, who struck a theme that has prevailed since last Friday's disaster: How were the tug and barge allowed to travel in such stormy weather, and why were corrective measures so slow in coming?

Once the complaints were aired, officials provided local administrators and Town Council members with their assessment of the damages, and practical information for obtaining relief and compensation. Those in attendance included several state legislators and officials from South Kingstown, Narragansett, Charlestown and Westerly.

On another front, Valois told the gathering that "South County is the engine that drives the state's tourism business (and) we are very concerned that national exposure of the oil spill will cause people to change their minds about coming to visit here."

Valois said the state intends to "aggressively" begin a national campaign to persuade people "that this problem will go away," and will leave behind no negative effects, either on tourist-related facilities or on seafood caught in the area.

To support that, Ernest Julian of the Health Department discussed a variety of steps the state took, including embargoing lobsters and closing fishing grounds, to ensure that the no contaminated seafood reaches the marketplace.

He said those steps have been thoroughly successful, and that "any of the shellfish and fish (from Rhode Island) on the market is safe."

The DEM's Keeney said there are four criteria for opening the 250 square miles of closed fishing grounds off South County: the barge must be removed, there must be no traces of oil, state water quality standards must be met through testing of water samples, and there must be no evidence of oil contamination in seafood in the area.

He said he had no idea how soon all those requirements, particularly the last one, would be met.

DEM assistant director David Borden said the department will conduct a comprehensive analysis of shellfish and fin fish in the closed area in the coming days. The monitoring will continue until tests show that the area is free of oil contamination.