Many Forms of Disaster Assistance Available

Springfield, Ill.— While the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and Small Business Administration (SBA) may provide valuable grants and loans to disaster survivors for repairing or replacing lost property, disaster assistance may be available through other sources.

The following are valuable resources for survivors of the Nov. 17 tornadoes in Champaign, Douglas, Fayette, Grundy, Jasper, LaSalle, Massac, Pope, Tazewell, Vermilion, Wabash, Washington, Wayne, Will and Woodford counties to receive help their recovery.

• Survivors can apply for Disaster Unemployment Assistance. Help may be available for Illinois workers, including business owners, who lost employment as a result of the Nov. 17 tornadoes. Applications are available at Illinois Department of Employment Security offices. Survivors can locate their nearest office by calling 800-244-5631 or online at ides.illinois.gov/myoffice. The deadline to apply is Thursday, Jan. 2, 2014.
• Survivors can get free legal help. Low-income survivors facing legal issues can call 844-726-8775, extension 256, to request free legal assistance about issues related to their recovery from the tornadoes. 
• Childcare-related expenses may be available. FEMA may provide eligible applicants with grants to pay for certain disaster-related childcare costs. The assistance costs may be available if a survivor had to move to a different community where child care costs are more expensive or the disaster caused their usual child care facility to close leaving only a more expensive facility available. For more information, call 800-621-FEMA (3362).
• Crisis counseling referrals are available. Crisis counseling is available to those in emotional distress following the tornadoes. Survivors can call 800-985-5990, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
• Find an available nearby rental property through online resources. Visit Nestrent.com or IlHousingSearch.org. Survivors can also call 800-621-FEMA (3362) for recommendations on available rental properties or to ask questions about temporary rental assistance.

FEMA urges disaster survivors affected by the tornadoes to register with FEMA online at DisasterAssistance.gov or by calling 800-621-FEMA (3362) or TTY 800-462-7585 or register with a smartphone or tablet at m.fema.gov.

For the latest information on Illinois’ recovery from the Nov. 17 storms, visit FEMA.gov/Disaster/4157. Follow FEMA online at twitter.com/femaregion5, facebook.com/fema and youtube.com/fema. The social media links provided are for reference only. FEMA does not endorse any non-government websites, companies or applications.

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). For TTY call 800-462-7585.

NEWS DESK: 217-522-2080

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