Four New Disaster Recovery Centers Open

Four New Disaster Recovery Centers Open

COLUMBIA, S.C. (Wednesday, Oct. 26) – Four new Disaster Recovery Centers

(DRCs) are now open in Williamsburg, Dorchester, Florence and Marion counties for homeowners, renters and business owners who sustained damage as a result of Hurricane Matthew storms and flooding that began Oct. 4, 2016.

Specialists from the State of South Carolina, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), nongovernmental organizations and the local community are on hand at all DRCs to answer questions and provide information on the types of assistance available to survivors.

All Disaster Recovery Centers are accessible and equipped to accommodate disaster survivors who need disability-related communication aids.

The new DRCs are located at:

Williamsburg County

Williamsburg Recreation Center 2084 Thurgood Marshall Highway Kingstree, SC 29556

9 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday – Friday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday Closed Sunday

Dorchester County

Miles Road Baptist Church

819 Miles Road

Summerville, SC 29485

8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday – Friday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday Closed Sunday

Marion County

Saffold Building 6882 Highway 908

Gresham, SC 29546

9 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday-Friday

10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday Closed Sunday

Florence County

Ragsdale Old Warehouse 245 S. Church St.

Lake City, SC 29560

9 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday – Friday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday Closed Sunday

Other active DRCs in in South Carolina counties affected by Hurricane Matthew:

Marion County

Mullins City Hall 111 NE Front Street Mullins, SC 29574

9 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday – Friday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday Closed Sunday

Orangeburg County

Orangeburg County Building 8423 Old State Road

Holly Hill, SC 29059

9 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday – Friday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday Closed Sunday

YMCA

2550 St. Matthew Road Orangeburg, SC 29118

9 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday – Friday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday Closed Sunday

Disaster survivors who have questions may call the FEMA Helpline. Survivors can apply online at DisasterAssistance.gov or by phone (voice, 711 or relay service) at 800-621- 3362. (TTY users should call 800-462-7585.) The toll-free lines are open 7 a.m. to 10 seven days a week. Multilingual operators are available.

If possible, register for FEMA assistance by phone or online before visiting a center. Going to a DRC is not a requirement of registration, but specialists there can provide guidance regarding disaster recovery and rental resources, explain written correspondence received from FEMA, inform survivors of the status of their application, make referrals to other organizations and answer questions.

When registering applicants will be asked to provide:

• Social Security number;
• Address of the damaged primary residence;
• Description of the damage;
• Information about insurance coverage;
• A current contact telephone number;
• An address where they can receive mail;
• Bank account and routing numbers for those preferring direct deposit of funds.

Assistance for eligible survivors can include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, and for other serious disaster-related needs, such as medical and dental expenses or funeral and burial costs. Also, low-interest disaster loans from the SBA are available for businesses of all sizes (including landlords), private nonprofits, homeowners and renters.

Low-interest disaster loans help fund repairs or rebuilding efforts and cover the cost of replacing lost or disaster-damaged personal property. Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) are available to businesses and private-nonprofits to assist with working capital needs as a direct result of the disaster.

Survivors – in all 24 qualifying counties – should register with FEMA even if they have insurance. FEMA cannot duplicate insurance payments, but under-insured applicants may receive help after their insurance claims have been settled. South Carolina counties designated for individual assistance are: Allendale, Bamberg, Barnwell, Beaufort, Berkeley, Calhoun, Charleston, Chesterfield, Clarendon, Colleton, Darlington, Dillon, Dorchester, Florence, Georgetown, Hampton, Horry, Jasper, Lee, Marion, Marlboro, Orangeburg, Sumter and Williamsburg counties. All designated counties also are now eligible to receive grants for debris removal and assistance for certain emergency protective measures.

All survivors may utilize any Disaster Recovery Center convenient to them. Every DRC can support ALL disaster survivors.

In South Carolina, the “One SC Fund” supports and directs funds to nonprofit organizations providing disaster relief & recovery assistance.  yourfoundation.org/community-impact/one-sc-fund-sc-flood-relief/. Survivors in the state who need food, clothing, and shelter to call 2-1-1, and for storm clean up to call 1-800- 451-1954.

For more information, visit the South Carolina Emergency Management Division at  scemd.org/recovery-section/ia .

All FEMA disaster assistance will be provided without discrimination on the grounds of race, color, sex (including sexual harassment), religion, national origin, age, disability, limited English proficiency, economic status, or retaliation. If you believe your civil rights are being violated, call 800-621-3362 or 800-462-7585(TTY/TDD).

You can  receive weather alerts, safety tips and learn about disaster resources by downloading the free FEMA App, available for Apple, Android, and Blackberry mobile devices. Visit fema.gov/mobile-app for more information.

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  https://twitter.com/femaregion4 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