Another Disaster Recovery Center Open In Hendry County 

Release Date: September 2, 2008
Release Number: 1785-012

» More Information on Florida Tropical Storm Fay

ORLANDO, Fla. -- A Disaster Recovery Center (DRC) has opened in Clewiston to assist Hendry County individuals, households and businesses affected by Tropical Storm Fay and continued flooding, recovery officials announced.

The DRC will operate daily from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. for this week only. It will close at 6 p.m. Saturday.

The new center is located at:

Harlem Civic Center
2000 7th St.
Clewiston 33440

The DRC is staffed with Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), State Emergency Response Team (SERT) agency disaster recovery specialists and representatives from voluntary agencies. They are ready to help survivors through the process of applying for disaster assistance.

Applicants should register by calling FEMA toll-free at 800-621-FEMA (3362). Those with a speech or hearing impairment may call the TTY number at 800-462-7585 and apply. Multilingual operators are available. The toll-free telephone numbers will operate 7 a.m. to midnight daily until further notice. Online registration for disaster assistance is available 24 hours a day at www.fema.gov or at a Disaster Recovery Center.

Once registered, FEMA disaster recovery specialists can check an individual's case, answer questions about their claim, or request information FEMA needs to process their claim. Recovery specialists can also supply contacts for other programs that may be able to help.

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) offers low-interest disaster loans to homeowners, renters, businesses of all sizes and private non-profit organizations. These loans are to repair or replace homes, businesses and personal property not covered by insurance and damaged by Tropical Storm Fay and continued flooding.

SBA representatives will be on hand at the DRC to meet with individuals and business owners to answer any questions about SBA's disaster loan program; help them complete their SBA disaster loan application and accept the completed disaster loan applications.  Anyone not able to go to a DRC should call the SBA Customer Service Center from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. local time, Monday through Friday, at 800-659-2955 for information and assistance or visit the SBA website at www.sba.gov.

FEMA coordinates the federal government's role in preparing for, preventing, mitigating the effects of, responding to, and recovering from all domestic disasters, whether natural or man-made, including acts of terror.

Last Modified: Wednesday, 03-Sep-2008 09:14:49