More Counties Eligible for Disaster Assistance for Damage from Katrina
Release Date: September 7, 2005
Release Number: 1604-008
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ATLANTA, Ga. -- Federal disaster aid for Mississippi has been extended to include additional counties affected by Hurricane Katrina, Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency officials announced today.
Individual Assistance has been extended to the counties of Adams, Attala, Claiborne, Choctaw, Clarke, Copiah, Covington, Franklin, Hinds, Jasper, Jefferson, Jefferson Davis, Jones, Kemper, Lauderdale, Lawrence, leake, Lincoln, Lowndes, Madison, Neshoba, Newton, Noxubee, Oktibbeha, Rankin, Scott, Simpson, Smith, Warren, Wayne, Winston and Yazoo. These counties have already been approved under the Public Assistance program for emergency protective measures and debris removal.
“Our commitment is to the residents of Mississippi to help them rebuild their lives,” said Bill Carwile, federal coordinating officer. “Residents who have suffered uninsured or underinsured damage in the additional counties can now call the FEMA registration line at 1-800-621-FEMA (3362) or register online at www.fema.gov.” Both avenues to registration are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The Individual Assistance program can include grants to help pay for temporary housing and home repairs as well as other disaster-related expenses. Low-interest loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) are also available to cover residential and business losses not fully compensated by insurance.
“We are working closely with our federal partners to bring resources of both the state and the nation to help our citizens recover,” added Robert Latham, Mississippi Emergency Management Agency director.
In addition to individual help, assistance in the form of funding for debris removal and emergency protective measures under the Public Assistance program has been extended to the counties of Alcorn, Benton, Bolivar, Calhoun, Carroll, Coahoma, DeSoto, Grenada, Holmes, Humphreys, Issaquena, Lafayette, Leflore, Marshall, Montgomery, Panola, Pontotoc, Prentiss, Quitman, Sharkey, Sunflower, Tallahatchie, Tate, Tippah, Tishomingo, Tunica, Union, Washington and Yalobusha.
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 to reduce the risk of loss in future disasters, trains first responders, workers 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: Thursday, 08-Sep-2005 11:30:06