Services Available for Matthew, Hermine Survivors with Disabilities, Access Needs

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Residents with disabilities or access and functional needs affected by the recent hurricanes in Florida can find many resources to assist in applying for federal disaster assistance.

Every resident in a declared disaster area receives the same services and assistance. This is a FEMA commitment.

FEMA Individual Assistance (IA) is available in nine counties affected by Hurricane Matthew: Brevard, Duval, Flagler, Nassau, Putnam, Seminole, St. Johns, Volusia and Indian River Counties. Residents in eight counties affected by Hurricane Hermine are also eligible to apply: Leon, Dixie, Levy, Citrus, Hernando, Pasco, Pinellas and Hillsborough Counties.

Survivors can register the following ways:

• Online at DisasterAssistance.gov.

• Download the FEMA mobile app.

• Call the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362 (voice, 711/VRS-Video Relay Service) (TTY: 800-462-7585). Multilingual operators are available (for Spanish, press 2).

• Visit your nearest disaster recovery center. To find the nearest disaster recovery center, go online to asd.fema.gov/inter/locator.

FEMA’s disaster recovery centers are locations where survivors can meet face-to-face with various agencies and service providers. The centers are equipped with accessibility kits that offer accommodations to meet the needs of the entire community, including people with disabilities and other access and functional needs.

In addition to accommodating survivors with disabilities, FEMA also reaches out to people with limited English proficiency by providing multilingual operators, making printed literature available in multiple languages and having translators available in the field. Information on the registration process is also available in American Sign Language at http://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/videos/111546.

FEMA grants do not have to be repaid. FEMA assistance is nontaxable and will not affect eligibility for Social Security, Medicaid or other federal benefits.

Register with FEMA as soon as possible and, if asked, complete and return a U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) loan application. There is no charge to apply for the loan and no obligation to accept it if approved. Homeowners can receive loans of up to $200,000 to repair or replace their primary residences. Homeowners and renters may also borrow up to $40,000 to replace damaged or destroyed personal property including vehicles.

For more information about SBA loans, call SBA’s Disaster Assistance Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955 (TTY: 800-877-8339), email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov, or visit http://www.sba.gov/disaster. Applicants may also apply online using the Electronic Loan Application (ELA) via SBA’s secure website at https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela.

For more information on Florida’s disaster recovery visit fema.gov/disaster/4280, fema.gov/disaster/4283, twitter.com/femaregion4, facebook.com/FEMA, and fema.gov/blog, floridadisaster.org or #FLRecovers. For imagery, video, graphics and releases, see fema.gov/Hurricane-Matthew.