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What’s Available at a Mississippi Disaster Recovery Center

OXFORD, Miss. – The Mississippi and federal emergency agencies are operating five disaster recovery centers in Mississippi to offer a number of services to individuals affected by the December storms. The centers, located in Benton, Coahoma, Marshall, Quitman and Tippah counties, are jointly operated by the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency and the Federal Emergency Management Agency in partnership with county and local agencies. They serve as one-stop-shops to provide community access to recovery services, referrals and information.

Anyone who needs reasonable accommodations when visiting the centers may request them by calling the FEMA helpline at 800-621-3362, or (TTY) 800-462-7585. Accommodations include American Sign Language interpreters, listening devices for the hard of hearing, magnifiers for low vision and video remote sign language interpreting. Service animals are welcome, and the centers are accessible to everyone.

While individuals are encouraged to register with FEMA before visiting a disaster center, they can use on-site services to contact FEMA and register for disaster assistance by calling 800-621-3362 or (TTY) 800-462-7585. Those who use 711-Relay or Video Relay Services can call 800-621-3362 to register. Online registration can be done at DisasterAssistance.gov by computer, tablet, iPhone, Android or other mobile device. MEMA and FEMA staff are available to answer questions on the status of applications and on special programs such as disaster unemployment assistance and disaster legal services.

Survivors are strongly encouraged to submit their claims to their private insurance providers early. If private insurance leaves coverage gaps, survivors may be eligible for FEMA assistance for their remaining needs. “Remaining needs” includes temporary lodging, personal property losses, medical or dental expenses, moving and storage fees or other costs not covered by personal insurance.

Applicants with questions about the determination letters they receive from FEMA can sit and talk with staff members who are prepared to explain the terms of the letters and to help applicants with the appeal process.

The Mississippi State Board of Contractors has provided the centers with two handouts – “A Consumer’s Guide to Home Improvement Contracts” and “Don’t Get Scammed!” – to aid people facing property repairs. State regulations require contractors to be licensed. Consumers can contact the Board’s hotline at 800-880-6161or 601-354-6161 to report fraudulent activity.

Center staff may direct storm survivors dealing with high levels of stress after the December storms to call the Mississippi Department of Mental Health hotline at 877-210-8513 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. The call is free and confidential.

Business owners, homeowners, renters and private nonprofit organizations whose losses were not fully covered by their private insurance can apply for a low-interest loan from the U.S. Small Business Administration. The SBA is the federal government’s primary source of money for the long-term rebuilding of disaster-damaged private property. An SBA representative is available at each center to assist applicants with the application process. 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 sba.gov/disaster. Deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals may call 800-877-8339.

All of these resources are located at the following disaster recovery centers:

Benton County

Ashland Fire Department

60 Third St.

Ashland, MS 38603

Coahoma County

Clarksdale Civic Auditorium

506 East 2nd St.

Clarksdale, MS 38614

Marshall County

Spring Hollow Plaza

198 N. Memphis St.

Holly Springs, MS 38635

Tippah County

The former Magnolia Women’s Center

41 B Mitchell Ave.

Walnut, MS 38683

Quitman County

Marks Fire Department Station

108 W. Main St.

Marks, MS 38646

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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).

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.

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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What’s Available at a Mississippi Disaster Recovery Center

New Rescue Equipment to Be Awarded to New Jersey Fire Company

NEW YORK, NY — The Borough of Deal’s Board of Commissioners are happy to report that the Deal Fire Company No. 2 will receive a $60,000 federal grant to replace out-of-date rescue equipment. The Borough of Deal is located within Monmouth County, New Jersey.

The new extrication equipment will enable the town’s firefighters to rescue people trapped in a car after an accident or unable to move as a result of another calamity. Extrication tools include hydraulically operated cutters and spreaders. Cutters enable firefighters to cut through buckled car metal as a scissors would do to cloth, while spreaders widen cut metal to allow extrication of a pinned individual.

The $60,376 award is an Assistance to Firefighters Grant from Region II of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and was announced here today by Dale McShine, Director of the Grants Division of the Region. The federal share of the grant totals $57,501. The grant became effective July 31, 2015.

“This rescue capability is a key part of our fire company’s responsibility in Deal and in assisting our neighboring communities,” said Fire Chief John Anastasia. “And we value this grant because it takes the place of our aging equipment and will allow us to do our job more safely and effectively,” he added.

FEMA’s Ms. McShine pointed out that in 2013, Assistance to Firefighter Grants provided funding of $21.9 million to 192 fire departments and EMS agencies throughout Region II, which includes New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. “We know that these grants play major roles in the local communities that receive them,” she said, “and we are very pleased to be a part of this process.”

For further information, please contact William H. Douglass at FEMA: 212-680-3665 or 917-561-3223.

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New Rescue Equipment to Be Awarded to New Jersey Fire Company

$4.6 Million FEMA Grant Awarded for Repairs to St. John Parish School Damaged in Hurricane Isaac

BATON ROUGE, La. – The St. John Parish School Board will receive a $4.6 million federal grant to repair damages to Lake Pontchartrain Elementary School caused by Hurricane Isaac, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) said Tuesday.

More than a foot of floodwater inundated Lake Pontchartrain Elementary during the August 2012 hurricane, causing the school to close its doors for repairs. The $4,624,088 FEMA grant helps reimburse the school board for work to bring the school back to its pre-disaster design, capacity and function.

“Getting this elementary school repaired and the students back in their classrooms will help drive the recovery forward for all of St. John Parish,” said Federal Coordinating Officer Gerard M. Stolar of FEMA.

The newly awarded funds are a portion of the more than $225 million in total Public Assistance recovery dollars approved for the state since the Aug. 29, 2012, disaster declaration. FEMA pays 75 percent of the eligible costs of projects, while the state and/or applicant cover the remaining 25 percent.

Once FEMA reimburses the state of Louisiana it is the state’s responsibility to manage the funds, which includes making disbursements to local jurisdictions and organizations that incurred costs.

More information on Louisiana disaster recovery is available online at www.fema.gov/disaster/4080 or www.gohsep.la.gov. FEMA is also on Twitter at twitter.com/femaregion6 and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/FEMA.

St. Bernard Parish’s Public School System Enters Final Leg of Recovery

Release Date: May 1, 2012
Release Number: 1603-974

» More Information on Louisiana Hurricane Rita
» More Information on Louisiana Hurricane Katrina

NEW ORLEANS, La. — The Federal Emergency Management Agency announced today a $148.3 million consolidated grant to the St. Bernard Parish School Board, largely supporting the implementation of their post-Katrina, overall recovery plan.

“For nearly six and a half years, we have been steadfast in our efforts to fully rebuild our schools for the children of St. Bernard. These efforts, comprised of partnerships between our school board, FEMA and the state, have culminated in this monumental grant, which allows us to finish our final recovery endeavors,” said St. Bernard School Board Superintendent Doris Voitier.

During Hurricane Katrina, St. Bernard Parish’s public school system was destroyed, with most of their facilities rendered inoperable following the storm. Prior to the unprecedented destruction, these facilities served nearly 9,000 students throughout the local community.

“Given the reality of the large-scale catastrophe at hand, St. Bernard Parish School Board Superintendent Doris Voitier had to swiftly make initial, yet effective, recovery decisions with the goal of quickly returning students to school. Through her leadership, these early efforts transformed into a comprehensive recovery plan that is now nearing fruition,” said FEMA’s Louisiana Recovery Office Deputy Director of Programs Andre Cadogan.

The school system’s new layout is built upon the determination that rebuilding all damaged facilities at their original locations was not in the best interest of the community’s post-Katrina needs. Instead, the same functions and capacities that existed pre-Katrina were restored in a different configuration.

FEMA’s recent grant supports these efforts, approving Voitier’s consolidated alternate project request for the agency to streamline federal funding provided for 15 damaged facilities into nine targeted projects.

The nine projects include Chalmette High School; Chalmette High School’s baseball field house, football field house and storage facility; Maumus Arts Center and Planetarium; new Lacoste Elementary School; the Cultural and Performing Arts Center; the school system’s transportation, maintenance and storage building; Arabi Elementary School’s gymnasium; J.J. Davies Elementary School’s enclosed walkway and new Gautier Elementary School.

“Our consolidated funding best reflects the needs of the St. Bernard Parish School Board as they embark on their final rebuilding efforts and becoming the first school system in Louisiana destroyed by Hurricane Katrina to reach their end goal—full recovery,” added Cadogan.

In total to date, FEMA has provided approximately $500 million in public assistance to the St. Bernard Parish School Board for all recovery work related to restoring their school system following hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

When FEMA approves projects through its supplemental Public Assistance grant, the funds are made available to the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security & Emergency Preparedness, who disburses them to the applicant for eligible work completed.

The Public Assistance program works with state and local officials to fund recovery measures and the rebuilding of government and certain private nonprofit organizations’ buildings, as well as roads, bridges and water and sewer plants. In order for the process to be successful, federal, state and local partners coordinate to draw up project plans, fund these projects and oversee their completion.

Last Modified: Wednesday, 02-May-2012 08:16:57

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St. Bernard Parish’s Public School System Enters Final Leg of Recovery