FEMA/State Hurricane Response Daily Summary September 22, 2004 Recovery Centers Respond To Unmet Needs 

Release Date: September 22, 2004
Release Number: 1539-136

» More Information on Florida Hurricane Charley and Tropical Storm Bonnie
» More Information on Florida Hurricane Ivan
» More Information on Florida Hurricane Frances

ORLANDO, Fla. -- As financial aid to Florida’s hurricane victims reached $283 million, officials reminded applicants to visit one of the state’s 29 recovery centers to discuss needs that have not been met by insurance settlements, volunteer organizations or disaster assistance programs.

Florida and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) emphasized that they do not want any family to fall through the cracks on making a recovery. While disaster assistance is not intended to restore storm victims to their previous pre-disaster condition, there are agencies and programs that deal with special issues.

There are now 29 recovery centers operating daily from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. (local time) in the declared counties. These centers, staffed by FEMA, state and Small Business Administration (SBA) personnel, have served 68,669 storm victims thus far. They offer information on available assistance, allow applicants to check the status of their requests and apply for low-interest SBA loans. There is also information about other agencies such as the Internal Revenue Service and Social Security Administration.

SBA has approved $78.6 million in home and business repair loans.

Since the first declaration, 513,215 residents have called 1-800-621-FEMA (3362) to register for disaster assistance. Requests approved for these applicants total $155.5 million for housing repair, (including $57.5 million for rental assistance) and $127 million for other needs, such as replacement of essential property not covered by insurance or other agencies.

There are now 1,131 manufactured housing units in place, with 689 occupied. Eight shelters remain open, housing 1,526 persons.

FEMA has deployed 4,531 disaster workers to Florida, including 888 community relations specialists who are walking in the disaster neighborhoods delivering assistance information and taking questions directly from the residents. In addition there are 457 local hires working on the recovery.

Power has been fully restored in the counties hit by Hurricanes Charley and Frances and 72 percent restored in the Panhandle counties raked by Ivan. It is estimated that electricity to 125,000 residents is still out.

Removal of storm debris left by Charley and Frances has reached the halfway mark with 13 million of an estimated 26 million cubic yards now hauled away for disposal. No estimate has been made of the amount of debris from Ivan.

FEMA has inspected 216,242 damaged homes and installed plastic sheeting on 20,812 seriously damaged roofs. In addition, 119,454 waterproof tarps have been delivered to emergency operations centers for distribution to property owners with less serious leaks caused by Charley and Frances

The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) reports that 13,873 claims have been filed for hurricane flood damage.

Disaster unemployment assistance is now available to residents who lost their source of income as a direct result of Hurricane Frances. It is available by application to the local state unemployment offices. Unlike regular unemployment, this program also serves self-employed persons and agricultural workers. The deadline for applying is October 6 or 8 depending on when your county was declared. Hurricane Charley victims have until October 15 to file. It is not necessary to live in a declared county to get this benefit.

The State Emergency Response Team (SERT) is a collaboration of Florida’s emergency management agencies led by the state coordinating officer. SERT’s mission is to ensure that Florida is prepared to respond to emergencies, recover from them, and mitigate their impact. Visit http://www.floridadisaster.org for the latest information on the hurricane relief effort.

On March 1, 2003, FEMA became part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. FEMA's continuing mission within the new department is to lead the effort to prepare the nation for all hazards and effectively manage federal response and recovery efforts following any national incident. FEMA also initiates proactive mitigation activities, trains first responders, and manages the National Flood Insurance Program and the U.S. Fire Administration.

Last Modified: Thursday, 23-Sep-2004 09:33:17