FEMA Mitigation Specialists to Answer Questions in Northeast Florida Cities

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Outreach staff of the Federal Emergency Management Agency will be at a motorcycle festival in Starke, a bead and jewelry show in Jacksonville and a home improvement store in Orange Park beginning this week.

The mitigation specialists will provide information on cleaning up and rebuilding homes after Tropical Storm Debby.

FEMA specialists will be in Bradford County to answer questions at the 2012 Starke Bikefest on Friday, Aug. 24, and Saturday, Aug. 25, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., and on Sunday, Aug. 26, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. The festival will take place near 100 E. Call St. in Starke.

In Duval County, the specialists will be at the Intergalactic Bead and Jewelry Show on Saturday, Aug. 25, and Sunday, Aug. 26, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The show will be at the University Center of the University of North Florida located at 12000 Alumni Drive in Jacksonville.

Specialists will also be available in Baker County to answer questions at Lowe’s from Wednesday,

Aug. 22, to Sunday, Aug. 26, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and on Monday, Aug. 27, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. The address is 2285 Kingsley Ave. in Orange Park.

Sign up for Tropical Storm Debby recovery updates via email by going to www.fema.gov/Disaster/4068 and clicking the subscription link. It’s a simple process that only requires a valid email address. During signup, subscribers can choose to receive updates immediately, daily or weekly.

For more information on Florida’s disaster recovery, visit www.fema.gov or www.floridadisaster.org. On Facebook, go to www.facebook.com/FloridaSERT. To receive Twitter updates: www.twitter.com/FLSERT or www.twitter.com/femaregion4.

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.

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). If you have a speech disability or hearing loss and use a TTY, call 800-462-7585 directly; if you use 711 or Video Relay Service (VRS), call 800-621-3362.

FEMA’s temporary housing assistance and grants for public transportation expenses, medical and dental expenses, and funeral and burial expenses do not require individuals to apply for an SBA loan. However, applicants who receive SBA loan applications must submit them to SBA loan officers to be eligible for assistance that covers personal property, vehicle repair or replacement, and moving and storage expenses.

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