Millions in Disaster Assistance Support New York Recovery
Federal, State Sources Provide More than $37.3 Million for Post-Nor'easter
Release Date: June 29, 2007
Release Number: 1692-070
» More Information on New York Severe Storms and Inland and Coastal Flooding
ALBANY, N.Y. -- Two months after the April nor'easter resulted in a federal disaster declaration, families, individuals, and business owners who were adversely affected by the storm have received more than $37.3 million in assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the State of New York, and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).
"Residents of the counties affected by the nor'easter have made tremendous strides to return life and property to normal conditions," said FEMA Federal Coordinating Officer Marianne C. Jackson.
The nor'easter struck April 14-18, and FEMA, State, and local disaster officials began preliminary damage assessments immediately to request a federal disaster declaration. When President Bush issued the declaration on April 24, FEMA partnered with the State of New York in the recovery process.
More than 8,700 residents of the declared counties of Albany, Dutchess, Orange, Richmond (Borough of Staten Island), Rockland, Ulster, and Westchester registered for Individual Assistance (IA) during FEMA's 60-day registration period. That period ended June 25.
The county breakdown for the 8,763 individuals who have registered with FEMA for assistance is as follows:
| County | FEMA Registrations |
|---|---|
| Albany | 299 |
| Dutchess | 703 |
| Orange | 554 |
| Richmond (Borough of Staten Island) | 1,200 |
| Rockland | 981 |
| Ulster | 188 |
| Westchester | 4,838 |
Nearly 3,400 individuals met with state and federal disaster recovery experts at one of the 10 Disaster Recovery Centers (DRC), which were established throughout the affected region.
While the last DRC closed June 9, assistance with disaster recovery issues is still available for recovery status questions or change of information, such as new telephone numbers or addresses. Call 1-800-621 FEMA (3362) or 1-800-462-7585 (TTY) for the hearing and speech impaired. The telephone lines are open daily from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., until further notice.
Recovery efforts approved to date include:
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$10.31 million for 4,753 households under the FEMA Housing Program. The program provides grants to displaced renters to find alternate housing, and to homeowners for repairs to make their home livable. If that cannot be done, grants are given to homeowners to rent alternate housing. A component of the FEMA Individuals and Households Program, it is funded entirely by FEMA.
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$1.06 million for 927 households under the New York State/FEMA Other Needs Assistance Program (ONA). ONA provides grants for lost personal property, transportation, medical, dental, and funeral expenses to those who have serious and essential needs not met by other assistance programs.
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More than $1.5 million in Public Assistance (PA) funds to help New York counties repair flood damage and rebuild infrastructure damaged or destroyed in the April nor'easter. This represents 75 percent of the cost of approved public assistance projects. The remaining 25 percent will be paid by the State of New York. The counties designated eligible for public assistance are Albany, Columbia, Dutchess, Essex, Greene, Montgomery, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Schoharie, Suffolk, Ulster and Westchester.
- $24.39 million in low-interest disaster loans for 536 homeowners, renters and business owners by the U.S. Small Business Administration. The SBA makes low-interest loans available to renters for personal property and automobiles, and to homeowners to repair or replace disaster-damaged real estate or personal property.
The SBA Loan forms for economic injury applications are available online at www.sba.gov/services/disasterassistance. Those loan applications are due Jan. 24, 2008.
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: Friday, 29-Jun-2007 14:51:26