Follow Community Guidelines on Debris Cleanup

BATON ROUGE, La. – As survivors of Hurricane Isaac continue cleaning up after the storm, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) urges everyone to check with their local officials regarding their community’s plan for storm debris cleanup and disposal.

“Our first recommendation is for everyone to carefully follow the community’s guidelines,” said Federal Coordinating Officer Mike Hall. “Debris created by a hurricane has unique challenges and we want everyone to help clean up and start getting their neighborhoods back to normal. But, we want them to do it safely.”

To get current information about the types and schedules of debris disposal, storm survivors should contact their local officials, city or parish waste disposal online sites, or local waste-disposal agency.

Affected communities have varying methods of disposing of storm debris.  That debris may include: household garbage; construction debris such as wood, drywall and carpet; household hazardous waste such as motor oil and batteries; vegetation debris; electronic items; and white goods such as refrigerators, washers and dryers, and air conditioners. Residents should clearly mark the contents on the debris containers.

If your community offers curbside pickup, please leave all household debris at the curbside.  Do not leave debris leaning against trees or poles or on private property, as this makes it harder to retrieve the debris.

If a community does not offer curbside pickup, residents should contact local officials for instructions.

Survivors can register for disaster aid online at www.disasterassistance.gov or via smartphone at m.fema.gov. They may also call 1-800-621-3362 or (TTY) 1-800-462-7585. Those who use 711 Relay or Video Relay Services may call 1-800-621-3362. The toll-free telephone numbers are open daily from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.

For more information on Louisiana disaster recovery, click www.fema.gov/disaster/4080 or www.gohsep.la.gov. You can follow FEMA on Twitter at www.twitter.com/femaregion6 or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/FEMA. Also visit our blog at www.fema.gov/blog.

Disaster recovery assistance is available without regard to race, color, religion, nationality, sex, age, disability, English proficiency or economic status.  If you or someone you know has been discriminated against, call FEMA toll-free at 800-621-FEMA (3362). For TTY call 800-462-7585.

FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.  Follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/#!/femaregion6, the R6 Hurricane Preparedness website at www.fema.gov/about/regions/regionvi/updates.shtm and the FEMA Blog at http://blog.fema.gov.