Preliminary Flood Maps in Greater New Orleans area Ready for Public View: Public Open Houses Scheduled

 

DENTON, Texas –Homeowners, renters and business owners in five parishes in the Greater New Orleans area are encouraged to look over preliminary flood maps in order to determine their flood risks and make informed decisions.

Jefferson, Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, and St. Charles, Parish officials and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) are presenting the preliminary maps in order to help leaders and residents identify known flood risks and use that information to make decisions about buying flood insurance and how the community should move forward with any development.

To share that data, public workshops are scheduled in the parishes where interested citizens can obtain more information about the proposed changes.

Orleans Parish                       Jefferson Parish                   Jefferson Parish

Monday, Mar. 18                    Tuesday, Mar. 19                   Wednesday, Mar. 20               

Pavilion of Two Sisters             Terrytown Playground              Lafreniere Park

New Orleans City Park              641 Heritage Avenue               Foundation Center

1 Palm Drive                             Terrytown, LA 70056               3000 Downs Boulevard         

New Orleans, LA 70124            2 p.m. – 7 p.m.                        Metairie, LA 70003  

2 p.m. – 7 p.m.                                                                         2 p.m. – 7 p.m.

 

St. Charles Parish                  St. Bernard Parish                 Plaquemines Parish

Monday, Mar. 25                     Tuesday, Mar. 26                   Wednesday, Mar. 27

RK Smith Middle School            St Bernard Civic Center           Belle Chasse Auditorium

281 Sugarland Parkway            8245 W. Judge Perez Drive     8398 Hwy 23

Luling, LA 70037                       Chalmette, LA 70043               Belle Chasse, LA 70037

2 p.m. – 7 p.m.                         2 p.m. – 7 p.m.                        2 p.m. – 7 p.m.

 

“As we work together with our state and local partners to bring this critical information to the five parishes, we ask that everyone review the maps to understand what flood risks are involved,” said FEMA R6 Administrator Tony Robinson. “The role of the community as an active partner in the flood mapping process is very important.”

Additional information is available, including links to the interactive mapping website on www.riskmap6.com and at http://go.usa.gov/gzU5. Residents can also contact their local floodplain administrators for more details.

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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.

 

 

 

Original source: 

Preliminary Flood Maps in Greater New Orleans area Ready for Public View: Public Open Houses Scheduled

Loans are Key to Disaster Recovery for Many Rhode Islanders

WARWICK, R.I.—  In-person help is available in Westerly to help homeowners, renters and businesses of all sizes that were affected by Hurricane Sandy with applications for low-interest disaster recovery loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration. SBA disaster recovery loans are the primary source of federal funds for long-term recovery.

SBA officials urge Rhode Islanders who have questions about SBA loans or would like help completing an application to visit the SBA Disaster Loan Outreach Center at the Misquamicut Fire Station, 65 Crandall Avenue, Westerly. Hours of operation are weekdays, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., through Wednesday, December 19. SBA specialists will assist with preparation and can send the application overnight free of charge to the SBA’s national processing center.

While grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency are helping individuals and families in the Ocean State with immediate recovery needs, they are rarely large enough to restore survivors to their pre-disaster condition. After a disaster, loans from the SBA are not just for businesses. Loans up to $200,000 are available to qualified homeowners to repair or replace damaged real estate. In addition, up to $40,000 may be available to homeowners and renters to repair or replace damaged personal property.

Many individuals and households who registered for disaster assistance from FEMA will be mailed an application for an SBA disaster recovery loan. If the SBA finds an individual does not qualify for a loan, the applicant may be referred back to FEMA to be considered for additional assistance from FEMA. No one is ever required to accept a loan. But failure to complete and submit the SBA application can deprive the family of the opportunity to access more aid from FEMA.

Businesses, regardless of size, can apply to SBA for up to $2 million to repair or replace disaster-damaged real estate, machinery and equipment, inventory and other business assets. The SBA also offers small business owners and most private nonprofit organizations economic injury disaster loans for ongoing business expenses to recover from the economic impact of a disaster. The SBA can make economic injury disaster loans even if the business didn’t sustain physical damages.

Businesses are urged to visit the SBA Business Recovery Center at the Greater Westerly-Pawcatuck Area Chamber of Commerce, One Chamber Way, Westerly. Hours of operation are weekdays, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., through Wednesday, December 19.

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Loans are Key to Disaster Recovery for Many Rhode Islanders