Disaster Housing - Alabama's No. 1 Priority
Release Date: September 26, 2005
Release Number: 1605-038
» More Information on Alabama Hurricane Katrina
MONTGOMERY, Al. - Housing assistance to Alabama hurricane victims and evacuees now tops $60 million and is expected to continue to rise to meet the unprecedented challenges created by Hurricane Katrina.
Because of the wide swath of destruction, a variety of housing alternatives have been made available to meet the coastal and regional needs of residents and evacuees. “We are looking at the unique needs of each region and evacuees from other states and working to meet those needs,” said Michael Bolch, overseeing federal recovery operations in Alabama.
One of the major sources of temporary housing assistance comes from the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Individuals and Household Program (IHP) which also provides financial assistance for necessary expenses not covered by other programs.
The disaster housing comes in many forms:
- More than 1,300 trailers have been placed in 13 state parks. As of September 25 there were 326 people staying in the travel trailers, campsites and cabins located at the parks and additional units are ready for occupancy.
- At other private RV parks, 220 evacuees have been housed and space is still available.
- Four commercial RV parks are housing 51 family members and have space available for more.
Travel trailers come ready for occupancy – with utilities included. - Bayou La Batre has 244 travel trailers on site with more families leasing in daily.
- Three interim housing facilities are available:
- Birmingham Interim Housing Facility: 175 rooms can accommodate 600 people in dormitory-style rooms with private baths; food is provided cafeteria style.
- Noble Training Center at Ft. McClellan offers 150 private and semi-private rooms and cafeteria-style meals and can accommodate 300.
- Starship Facility, also at Ft. McClellan, offers 80 private, dormitory-style rooms, shared bathing facilities and cafeteria-style meals for up to 240 people.
- Vouchers for hotels are also availabl
In addition, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) offers low-interest loans to homeowners, renters and businesses of all sizes to help with long-term recovery needs.
FEMA’s Housing Assistance effort has to date provided:
- Housing Assistance: $60.6 million, which includes:
- $42.6 million rental assistance – 25,678 interim housing applications approved
- $18 million – necessary expenses not covered by other programs
- $817,500 in low-interest SBA loans approved
- 74,540 housing inspections completed
Anyone with a housing need must first register for assistance by calling 800-621-FEMA (3362). The speech and hearing impaired may call TTY 800-462-7585.
FEMA prepares the nation for all hazards and manages the federal response and recovery efforts following an incident of national significance. FEMA also initiates mitigation activities, trains first responders, works with state and local emergency managers, and manages the National Flood Insurance Program and the U.S. Fire Administration. FEMA became part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on March 1, 2003.
Last Modified: Monday, 26-Sep-2005 10:32:57