Federal disaster relief officials began canvassing neighborhoods across the First Coast immediately following Hurricane Irma.
They’re trying to register people who suffered losses due to historic flooding or wind before time runs out, said FEMA spokeswoman Nikki Gaskins.
“You don’t have an infinite amount of time to register. Sixty days from when the president declared a state of disaster … you have 60 days to register,” he said.
The only physical location to apply in Jacksonville is in San Marco on the corner of Atlantic Boulevard and Hendricks Avenue. St. Johns County storm victims can do the same at the county’s wind mitigation building on Agricultural Center Drive.
Gaskins said more units are coming, but where they’re placed is up to state and local authorities.
“When we come in, we are merely guests of the state. We go where the need is and where they tell us,” she said.
In the meantime, temporary registration centers, organized in part by Florida Senator Marco Rubio, are open Monday until 6 at the St. Johns County Administration Building, and Tuesday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Jacksonville’s Prime Osborn Center.
The temporary centers will also include disaster relief nonprofits the American Red Cross, the Salvation Army and the United Way.
In Clay County, FEMA representatives will join the Red Cross at the Fleming Island Library until 6 p.m. on Wednesday. Disaster relief teams will be canvassing neighborhoods in the area to register more people and assess any additional damage before setting up shop at the Clay County Supervisor of Elections Office in Green Cove Springs on Thursday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Gaskins said that after someone applies, a FEMA inspector will contact the applicant to schedule an inspection to verify your disaster related losses. For those with significant damage to their roofs, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is offering to install temporary fixes before they’re permanently repaired.
Ryan Benk can be reached at rbenk@wjct.org, at (904) 358 6319 or on Twitter at @RyanMichaelBenk.
