Three weeks after the federal disaster declaration for Hurricane Florence, more than $210 million in state and federal funds has been provided directly to North Carolinians to aid in their recovery.
The funds include grants from FEMA, claims payments from the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA):
• More than $82 million in state and federal grants approved for homeowners and renters.
• More than $66 million in advance payments and claims paid to NFIP policyholders.
• Nearly $62 million in SBA low-interest disaster loans approved for homeowners, renters and business owners.
Other state and federal updates include:
• More than 22,000 North Carolina homeowners and renters have received housing assistance including grants for repairs.
• More than 14,000 homeowners and renters have received financial rental assistance.
o Additionally, FEMA is working closely with the State of North Carolina to implement a targeted strategy to provide other forms of temporary housing to best meet the needs of displaced survivors.
• FEMA and the State of North Carolina have opened 11 Disaster Recovery Centers and welcomed more than 5,000 visitors. The centers serve as one-stop shops for hurricane survivors who need one-on-one help. Survivors can visit any center for assistance. To find a center, go to fema.gov/DRC. More centers will be opened soon.
• Dozens of Disaster Survivor Assistance crews have visited thousands of homes in storm-damaged communities. Crew members can answer questions, register survivors, and make referrals to community partners. All FEMA employees and contractors carry an official government or contractor badge to identify themselves. To guard against fraud, survivors should ask to see a badge.
• FEMA inspectors have completed nearly 72,000 home inspections as part of the process of determining whether applicants are eligible for assistance. If an applicant’s home was inaccessible at the time of FEMA registration—but is now accessible—the applicant should call FEMA or visit any recovery center for a status update.
• More than $54 million in food assistance has been issued through the Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (D-SNAP). This includes nearly 185,000 people who have received a supplement to their existing Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) benefits and more than 180,000 new people who were not already receiving help through the FNS program.
North Carolina homeowners, renters and business owners in the following 28 counties may apply for disaster assistance for uninsured and underinsured damage and losses resulting from Hurricane Florence: Beaufort, Bladen, Brunswick, Carteret, Columbus, Craven, Cumberland, Duplin, Greene, Harnett, Hoke, Hyde, Johnston, Jones, Lee, Lenoir, Moore, New Hanover, Onslow, Pamlico, Pender, Pitt, Richmond, Robeson, Sampson, Scotland, Wayne and Wilson.
For qualified homeowners or renters, disaster grants help pay for temporary rental assistance, basic home repairs to make homes habitable, and for serious disaster-related needs not covered by insurance.
Survivors should contact their insurance agency first. For uninsured or underinsured losses, apply for disaster assistance:
• Go online to DisasterAssistance.gov; or
• Use the FEMA mobile app; or
• Call the disaster assistance helpline at 800-621-3362 (voice, 711 or VRS) anytime from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. local time seven days a week until further notice. Those who use TTY may call 800-462-7585. Multilingual operators are available; or
• Visit a recovery center.
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