Residents of four Northeast Florida counties are now eligible for assistance from FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency. St. Johns, Putnam, Flagler and Volusia County homeowners and renters who lost property in Hurricane Matthew can apply for grants to replace it.
FEMA spokesman Greg Hughes says the grants are meant to cover uninsured losses of structures or personal property or temporary housing, like hotels or rental homes for people displaced.
“We encourage people who think their losses were minor and they’re ambivalent about whether to contact FEMA, we ask that they register anyway, and if they don’t want to pursue it in the future, that’s fine. No harm,” he said.
Hughes says people can register by calling 1-800-621-FEMA(3362) or on its website: DisasterAssistance.gov. Assistance applications take about 20 minutes, and photo documentation, as well as detailed descriptions of damage, are encouraged.
Residents in four more Florida counties are expected to qualify for FEMA assistance soon.
Hughes says his agency is also working with state and county officials to set up physical disaster response centers, but the locations of those are still being worked out.
Contact Jessica Palombo at 904-358-6315, jpalombo@wjct.org or on Twitter at @JessicaPubRadio.
