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Disaster Recovery Center to Close in Harris County, Texas

AUSTIN, Texas –The Disaster Recovery Center (DRC), located at the Denver Harbor Multi-Service Center, 6402 Market St., Houston, TX, in Harris County, will close at 2 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 16.

DRCs, operated by the State of Texas and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and supported by other agencies, remain open until the needs of area residents have been met. The centers serve as a one-stop shop for information and guidance about disaster assistance.

Visiting a DRC is not required to register for FEMA assistance. Those with questions regarding the application process, or who decide to register for assistance after a DRC closes, 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 p.m. seven days a week.

Survivors also may use any one of several nearby DRCs that remain open. Visit FEMA’s DRC locator at http://asd.fema.gov/inter/locator/home.htm to find the center nearest to them.

Texas homeowners and renters who have registered for disaster assistance with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) are encouraged by recovery officials to “stay in touch.” If survivors change their address or phone numbers they should update that information with FEMA. Missing or erroneous information could result in delays getting a home inspection or in receiving assistance.

Specialists from the State of Texas, FEMA, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), nongovernmental organizations and the local community are available at DRCs to answer questions and provide information on the types of assistance available to homeowners, renters and business owners who sustained damage as a result of the severe storms, tornadoes, straight-line winds and flooding from Oct. 22 to Oct. 31.

For more information on Texas recovery, visit the disaster web page at www.fema.gov/disaster/4245, Twitter at https://www.twitter.com/femaregion6 and the Texas Division of Emergency Management website, https://www.txdps.state.tx.us/dem/ .

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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.

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.

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Disaster Recovery Center to Close in Harris County, Texas

SBA to Open Disaster Loan Outreach Center in Austin; Del Valle DRC to Close

AUSTIN, Texas—The State/FEMA Disaster Recovery Center (DRC) at Dove Springs Recreation Center, 5801Ainez Dr., Austin, TX 78744 in Travis County, will transition to a U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Disaster Loan Outreach Center (DLOC) for five days only, beginning Monday, Jan. 11.

The Travis County DRC, located at the Elroy Community Library, 13512 FM 812, Del Valle, TX 78617, will close at 2 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 9.

The Dove Springs DRC in Austin will remain open until 2 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 9. The DLOC will be open for business, at the same address, Jan. 11 to Jan. 15, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. each day.

Representatives from the SBA will be available at the DLOC to meet individually with residents and business owners who sustained damage as a result of the severe storms, tornadoes, straight-line winds and flooding from Oct. 22 to Oct. 31. They will answer their questions, explain SBA’s disaster loan program, help them complete their applications and close their approved disaster loans.

Survivors also may use any one of several nearby DRCs that remain open. Visit FEMA’s DRC locator at http://asd.fema.gov/inter/locator/home.htm to find the center nearest to them.

For more information on Texas recovery, visit the disaster web page at www.fema.gov/disaster/4245, Twitter at https://www.twitter.com/femaregion6 and the Texas Division of Emergency Management website, https://www.txdps.state.tx.us/dem.

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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.

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.

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SBA to Open Disaster Loan Outreach Center in Austin; Del Valle DRC to Close

FEMA Releases Severe El Nino Disaster Response Plan

FEMA Releases Severe El Nino Disaster Response Plan

For California, Arizona, Nevada

Combined Federal, State task force to meet today at Governor’s Office of Emergency Services

Sacramento Calif., — The FEMA Region 9 office, in Oakland, CA has established an El Niño task force charged with preparing the regional office and its partners for the impacts of El Niño. Today, the FEMA Region 9 Office released its Severe El Nino Disaster Response plan and will convene a regional interagency steering committee meeting in Northern California to exercise the plan.

The task force has evaluated the core capabilities needed to prepare for, respond to, recover from and mitigate against any El Niño related incident that occurs across the office’s area of responsibility. The task force has developed an Executive Decision Support Guide, or response plan, and an interactive flood decision support tool to enhance the regional office’s ability to respond to potential El Niño flood events during the winter of 2015-2016. The plan seeks to align actionable decision points that provide critical information that leaders need to make informed decisions by determining the hazard level potentially impacting lives, public health, safety, property, and critical infrastructure.

The objectives of the task force developed in the plan:

Establish actionable processes and procedures to identify the location, potential impacts, and probability of occurrence of natural hazards
Identify key at-risk populations, critical facilities and natural/cultural resources
Identify gaps in core capabilities needed to overcome the threat
Develop key messages to motivate partners to prepare and act

The task force consists of subject matter experts from the FEMA Region 9 office as well as other federal, state, local, tribal and community partners.

“California is at risk for many types of disasters,” said Mark Ghilarducci, Director of the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services. “These joint exercises with our partners allow us to prepare for and respond to emergencies.”

“Utilizing a ‘whole community’ approach to emergency management reinforces the fact that FEMA is only one part of our nation’s emergency management team,” said Bob Fenton, FEMA Region 9 Administrator. “The exercise gives us an opportunity to learn from each other, and from the experts in the areas where solutions will come from.”

“There aren’t many types of disasters capable of impacting all Arizonans, but a strong El Niño could cause flooding, evacuations and power outages anywhere (and everywhere) in the state,” said Arizona Department of Emergency and Military Affairs Deputy Director Wendy Smith-Reeve. “It takes a team effort to plan for, respond to and recover from the kinds of widespread consequences being talked about, which is why we’re invested in the education and training of and outreach to the whole community.”

FEMA recognizes that a government-centric approach to emergency management is not adequate to meet the challenges posed by a catastrophic incident. Utilizing a “whole community” approach to emergency management reinforces that FEMA is only one part of our nation’s emergency management team.

The El Nino task force has focused on interpreting data in areas of California, Arizona and Nevada that have proved historically vulnerable in order to develop risk projections of current El Niño events. It is through this assessment the task force seeks to determine the critical decision points needed by senior leaders during all phases of an incident from pre-incident, incident onset, through response and recovery.

Today, the FEMA Region 9 Office will participate in a Rehearsal of Concept (ROC) exercise with its disaster response partners to exercise the response plan and its flood decision support tools. During this exercise, participants will identify issues, gaps and shortfalls that will be incorporated to enhance the plan’s utility. The task force will leverage best available data from predictive modeling and other analytical tools to keep senior decision makers informed throughout potential El Niño events. The efforts undertaking by the task force during the ROC will enable the FEMA Region 9 Office, its partners and ultimately the disaster survivor to make intelligent decisions for any El Niño related event.

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FEMA Releases Severe El Nino Disaster Response Plan

Receive Disaster Assistance from FEMA? Texans Should Spend Wisely & Well

AUSTIN, Texas ─ Disaster Assistance grants should be used only for disaster-related expenses. That’s the word from state emergency management officials and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

FEMA recommends money received for repairs to your home due to damage caused by October’s severe storms, tornadoes, straight-line winds and flooding should be used right away. While the assistance is tax free and the grants do not have to be repaid, survivors are reminded to use their funds wisely and solely for recovery.

When a grant is awarded, FEMA sends a letter listing examples of approved uses that include home repair, rental assistance for a different place to live temporarily, and other disaster-related expenses. These include repair or replacement of a flooded essential vehicle or medical care for an injury caused by the disaster. Disaster grants should not be used for regular living expenses, such as utility bills or food, medical or dental expenses not related to the disaster, travel, entertainment, or any other discretionary expenses not disaster-related.

“It’s important that individuals who suffered damages spend the money according to their specific grant,” said FEMA Federal Coordinating Officer Kevin L. Hannes. “A letter explaining the purpose for the grant will be sent to the applicant.”

FEMA advises survivors to read the letter carefully, as it explains ways in which the grant money should be used. Recipients are advised to keep receipts from all purchases to show how funds were spent.

Home repair grants and rental assistance from FEMA does not require applicants to apply for a loan from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). However, an applicant must complete an SBA loan application to be eligible for additional assistance under the Other Needs Assistance (ONA) program that may cover personal property, vehicle repair or replacement, and moving and storage expenses. There are other ONA grants, such as childcare, medical and dental expenses, and funeral and burial expenses that do not require individuals to apply for an SBA loan.

Survivors with questions regarding their application or who have not yet registered for assistance should visit DisasterAssistance.gov or call the FEMA Helpline (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 p.m. seven days a week. Multilingual operators are available.

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Visit www.fema.gov/texas-disaster-mitigation for publications and reference material on rebuilding and repairing safer and stronger.

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Receive Disaster Assistance from FEMA? Texans Should Spend Wisely & Well

City of Leon Valley, Texas, Unveiling High Water Mark, Announcing Initiative Targeting Local Flood Risk

DENTON, Texas – In October of 1998, the City of Leon Valley was devastated by flooding. On January 9, 2016, officials will unveil a High Water Mark in that city. They will also announce the start of a new initiative reminding residents of the community’s flood risks. Mayor Chris Riley will unveil the High Water Mark at Raymond Rimkus Park at 9:00 a.m.

The High Water Mark Initiative places a permanent High Water Mark on the Raymond Rimkus Park Walking Path. It encourages local residents and businesses to learn about their flood risks. They are also encouraged to make emergency plans and put together disaster supply kits. The initiative was based on tools and strategies developed by FEMA and eight other Federal agencies.

Floods are the most common and costly natural disaster in the United States. Someone with a 30 year mortgage has a 26 percent chance of flooding. That’s more than twice the chance of a fire.

Visit www.leonvalleytexas.gov or call 210-684-1391 to learn more about this initiative and use the “Cost of Flooding” tool at https://www.FloodSmart.gov to see how much damage flooding can do to your home, inch by inch.

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Follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/#!/femaregion6, and the FEMA Blog at http://blog.fema.gov.

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City of Leon Valley, Texas, Unveiling High Water Mark, Announcing Initiative Targeting Local Flood Risk

President Declares Major Disaster for Mississippi

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) today announced that federal disaster assistance has been made available to the state of Mississippi to supplement state, tribal and local recovery efforts in the area affected by severe storms, tornadoes, straight-line winds, and flooding during the period of December 23-28, 2015.

The President’s action makes federal funding available to affected individuals in Benton, Coahoma, Marshall, Quitman, and Tippah counties

Assistance can include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses, and other programs to help individuals and business owners recover from the effects of the disaster.

Federal funding also is available to state and eligible local and tribal governments and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work as a result of the severe storms and flooding in Benton, Marshall, and Tippah counties.

Federal funding is also available on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures statewide.

Joe M. Girot has been named as the Federal Coordinating Officer for federal recovery operations in the affected area. Girot said additional designations may be made at a later date if requested by the state and warranted by the results of further damage assessments.

Follow FEMA online at http://blog.fema.gov, www.twitter.com/fema, www.facebook.com/fema, and www.youtube.com/fema. Also, follow Administrator Craig Fugate’s activities at www.twitter.com/craigatfema. The social media links provided are for reference only.

FEMA does not endorse any non-government websites, companies or applications.

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President Declares Major Disaster for Mississippi

Federal Aid Programs for the State of Missouri Emergency Declaration

Following is a summary of key federal disaster aid programs that can be made available as needed and warranted under President Obama’s emergency disaster declaration issued for the State of Missouri.

Assistance for the State and Affected Local Governments Can Include as Required:

FEMA is authorized to provide appropriate assistance for required emergency measures, authorized under Title V of the Stafford Act, to save lives and to protect property and public health and safety, or to lessen or avert the threat of a catastrophe in the designated areas.

Specifically, FEMA is authorized to provide debris removal and emergency protective measures (Categories A and B), limited to direct Federal assistance, under the Public Assistance program at 75 percent Federal funding.

FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders and 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.

Stay informed of FEMA’s activities online: videos and podcasts available at www.fema.gov/medialibrary and www.youtube.com/fema; follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/fema and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/fema.

Originally posted here:

Federal Aid Programs for the State of Missouri Emergency Declaration

Calaveras County Receives $2.8 Million Water Treatment Grant

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Calaveras County will receive a grant of approximately $2.8 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) for a water pretreatment facility located at the Jenny Lind Water Treatment Plant, near the town of Jenny Lind.

As a result of the Butte Wildfire, which began Sept. 9, 2015, a pretreatment facility is now needed to remove contaminants and sediments in the potable water supply. The pretreatment facility will filter out debris, turbidity and heavy metals discharged into the watershed that feeds the New Hogan Reservoir.

FEMA pays 75 percent of the eligible costs with a 25 percent match by the Calaveras County Water District. The total cost is projected to be $3.75 million.

The Jenny Lind Water Treatment Plant, which supplies water to 10,000 customers, receives water from the Calaveras River, just downstream of the New Hogan Reservoir. The reservoir will discharge these contaminants during heavy rains for up to 20 years.

This grant comes from the FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant program. These grants are available to state, tribal, local governments and some non-profit organizations. Sub-recipients propose projects to the Cal OES, which administers the overall program and selects projects that meet the goal of reducing or eliminating losses from future disasters.

The fund is based on the amount of money FEMA spends on Individual Assistance and Public Assistance in a specific event. The total amount available is roughly equal to 20 percent of the funds disbursed by the two programs, based on California’s Enhanced Mitigation Plan, which exceeds federal minimum requirements.

For more information on California’s wildfire recovery, visit: caloes.ca.gov and fema.gov/disaster/4240 and follow us on Twitter @femaregion9 or @Cal_OES and at facebook.com/fema or facebook.com/CaliforniaOES.

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). If you have a speech disability or hearing loss and use a TTY, call 800-462-7585 directly; if you use 711 or Video Relay Service (VRS), call 800-621-3362.

Originally posted here:

Calaveras County Receives $2.8 Million Water Treatment Grant

SBA to Open Disaster Loan Outreach Center in Navarro County

AUSTIN, Texas—The State/FEMA Disaster Recovery Center (DRC) in Navarro County will transition to a U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Disaster Loan Outreach Center (DLOC), over the New Year holiday weekend.

The Navarro County DRC, located at the Navarro Center Mall, 800 N. Main St., Corsicana, will remain open until 2 p.m., Dec. 31. The DLOC will open for business on Jan. 4 at the same address. Normal hours of operation at the DLOC will be 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday – Friday.

All State/FEMA DRCs in Texas will close for the day at 2 p.m., Dec. 31 and will be closed Jan. 1 to Jan. 3 for the New Year holiday.

Visiting a DRC is not required to register for FEMA assistance. Survivors with questions regarding the application or the appeals process, or who decide to register for assistance after a DRC closes 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 p.m. seven days a week, except Jan. 1. Multilingual operators are available.

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SBA to Open Disaster Loan Outreach Center in Navarro County

Help Us Help You: Stay in Touch With FEMA

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) continue working together to help survivors of the Butte and Valley wildfires. More and more survivors continue to find temporary housing accommodation; as they do, they should continue to stay in touch with FEMA.

FEMA’s Individual and Households Program – which includes rental assistance and Manufactured Housing Units – is intended as a temporary solution to help bridge the gap for survivors until they can find a permanent housing solution.

Wildfire survivors and their families eligible for and living in temporary housing as of Dec. 28, 2015:

838 households are receiving rental assistance.
31 households have received Manufactured Housing Units.

Additionally, 521 households have been able to remain in their homes thanks to financial assistance that pays for home repairs or to replace necessary household items so they can remain safely at home.

There are 37 households using the Transitional Sheltering Assistance program, which offers temporary sheltering at hotels and motels for eligible applicants until they secure alternative housing accommodations.

As a reminder, survivors who registered for housing and other federal assistance should keep in touch with FEMA and keep their contact information current, especially if they have changed their phone number, email address or mailing address.

FEMA may need to contact survivors for a number of reasons and without current contact information, the agency will not be able to reach them. After several attempts, cases are put on hold until the survivor contacts the agency.

Applicants can track their case status and should notify FEMA if they receive insurance settlements or discover additional damage.

How to stay in touch with FEMA:

Go to www.DisasterAssistance.gov.
Dial the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362 or (TTY) 800-462-7585.
For those who use 711 Relay or Video Relay services, call 800-621-3362.
These toll-free numbers are operated from 6 a.m. to midnight daily.
Multilingual phone operators are available on the FEMA Helpline. Choose Option 2 for Spanish and Option 3 for other languages.

In addition to temporary housing programs, these services remain available to survivors:

Crisis Counseling services provided through the Calaveras and Lake County Mental Health Departments. Crisis Counseling is designed to help both children and adults cope with the emotional stress associated with a disaster.
- Call the Calaveras County Mental Health Crisis Hotline: 800-499-3030 (the main office number is 209-754-6525).
- Reach the Lake County Mental Health Crisis Hotline by calling 800-900-2075.
Disaster Legal Services (DLS) are provided to survivors free-of-charge through the Young Lawyers Division of the American Bar Association. Legal advice is limited to cases that will not produce a fee. Services include assistance with insurance claims, advice on landlord/tenant disputes, home repair contracts and contractors, mortgage-foreclosure issues, assisting in consumer protection matters, guidance on replacement of wills and other important legal documents. Disaster Legal Services can be reached at 800-657-0479 between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m., Monday through Friday. For TTY, dial 711.

For more information on California’s wildfire recovery, visit: Cal OES and http://www.fema.gov/disaster/4240. Follow us on Twitter @femaregion9 and @Cal_OES and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/FEMA and https://www.facebook.com/CaliforniaOES.

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 disability or hearing loss and use a TTY, call 800-462-7585 directly; if you use 711 or Video Relay Service (VRS), call 800-621-3362.

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Help Us Help You: Stay in Touch With FEMA

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