FEMA, SBA may offer help with privately owned roads

OKLAHOMA CITY – The recent severe storms, floods, straight-line winds and tornadoes occurring May 5 through June 4 damaged public and private roads and bridges.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) may be able to help when repairing privately owned access roads and bridges.

FEMA’s Individual Assistance program could cover the expenses of repairing privately owned access roads if the following criteria are met:

• It is the applicant’s primary residence;
• It is the only access to the property;
• It is impossible to access the home with the damaged infrastructure; or
• The safety of the occupants could be adversely affected.

SBA is FEMA’s federal partner in disaster recovery, and may also help. Private property owners, established homeowner associations and properties governed by covenant may apply for a low-interest disaster loans directly through SBA. These funds can be used to repair or replace private roads and bridges. Privately owned access roads owned by homeowner associations may apply directly to the SBA.

Homeowners who jointly own access roads and bridges may also be eligible for repair grants or SBA loans under certain circumstances. In some cases, sharing the cost of repairs with funds obtained through a combination of FEMA, SBA loans and private funds may be another option. The affected homeowners should each register with FEMA individually.

Survivors can apply for state and federal assistance online at www.DisasterAssistance.gov or by calling 800-621-FEMA (3362) or (TTY) 800-462-7585. Those who use 711-Relay or Video Relay Services can call 800-621-3362 to register.

Each request for private road or bridge repair assistance is evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

Repair awards through Individual Assistance funding are for disaster-related damages and will not include improvements to the road’s pre-disaster condition, unless improvements are required by current local or state building codes of ordinances.

To register online visit www.DisasterAssistance.gov, by phone at toll-free 800-621-3362 or (TTY) 1-800-462-7585, or via smartphone or tablet at m.fema.gov.

For more information on Oklahoma disaster recovery, click http://www.fema.gov/disaster/4222 or visit OEM at www.oem.ok.gov. 

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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.

The Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management (OEM) prepares for, responds to, recovers from and mitigates against emergencies and disasters. The department delivers services to Oklahoma cities, towns and counties through a network of more than 350 local emergency managers.

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 www.twitter.com/femaregion6 and the FEMA Blog at http://blog.fema.gov.

The SBA is the federal government’s primary source of money for the long-term rebuilding of disaster-damaged private property. SBA helps businesses of all sizes, private non-profit organizations, homeowners, and renters fund repairs or rebuilding efforts and cover the cost of replacing lost or disaster-damaged personal property. These disaster loans cover losses not fully compensated by insurance or other recoveries and do not duplicate benefits of other agencies or organizations. For more information, applicants may contact SBA’s Disaster Assistance Customer Service Center by calling (800) 659-2955, emailing disastercustomerservice@sba.gov, or visiting SBA’s website at www.sba.gov/disaster. Deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals may call (800) 877-8339.