MANATEE COUNTY, Fla. – On Saturday, FEMA opened a disaster relief center in Manatee County to provide individual assistance to residents affected by Hurricane Debby.
The center is operated out of the Lakewood Ranch Library.
According to FEMA, Hurricane Debby victims can apply for assistance online or by phone, but many residents, especially seniors, feel more comfortable sitting across a table from someone who understands what they are going through.
“For some people, the process can seem very complicated and they don’t know what they qualify for and what they don’t,” said FEMA spokesman Nate Custer. “Some of the main components are temporary housing assistance, some emergency home repairs or replacement of lost personal items.”
However, help is not only available for residents whose homes have suffered damage, but also for residents whose livelihoods have been damaged.
WFTS
“Let’s say a resident was self-employed and lost tools or equipment that significantly impacted their income. Then FEMA might consider replacing those items,” Custer said.
According to FEMA, it is important that residents bring any materials that can help support their case.
“If they have receipts for emergency work or a contractor helped them pull out wet drywall that they already paid for, bring those receipts and any photos that show what the damage looked like when the water came up and what it looked like afterward. Those photos are very helpful,” Custer said.
The center is aimed not only at the residents of Manatee County, but at all residents of the ten counties for which the President has declared a state of emergency.
“I think the exposure to FEMA is a huge benefit to them because when they go through something like this, they’re almost living day to day. What will tomorrow bring, how am I going to cope? They may still be in shock,” Custer said. “And when people come here, they tell their friends and neighbors, ‘Hey, I was down at the rehabilitation center and got some good help, you should check this out.'”
The FEMA Disaster Recovery Center is open daily from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Click here for more information.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has issued a consumer warning about replacement airbags that have killed at least three people in the past year. I-Team investigator Adam Walser found that one of the victims was a young Florida mother whose family has filed a lawsuit claiming a counterfeit Chinese airbag exploded in her car and killed her.
Exploding airbag kills mother in Florida and highlights potential dangers in used cars
