Individuals and households in Clarke, Grenada, Jasper, Lawrence, Panola and Walthall counties in Mississippi may now apply for federal disaster assistance under FEMA’s Individuals and Households Program for uninsured damages and losses as a result of the severe storms, tornados, straight-line winds, and flooding on April 12, 2020.
These counties have been added to the disaster declaration signed by the President on April 16, along with Covington, Jefferson Davis and Jones counties that previously had been designated for FEMA disaster assistance under the Individual Assistance program.
Covington, Jefferson Davis and Jones counties, previously designated for assistance for emergency protective measures (Category B) under FEMA’s Public Assistance Program, are now also eligible for Public Assistance Categories A and C through G for repair, replacement, or restoration of disaster-damaged publicly owned facilities and the facilities of certain non-profit organizations.
Survivors who received damage from the April 12 severe storms in these counties may register for assistance in one of three ways:
- Online by logging onto DisasterAssistance.gov
- Online by downloading the FEMA app, available for Apple and Android mobile devices, which will take you to DisasterAssistance.gov to register. To download the app, visit: fema.gov/mobile-app or your phone’s app store.
- Call 800-621-3362. Persons who are deaf, hard of hearing or have a speech disability and use a TTY may call 800-462-7585. Language translators also are available.
- Toll-free numbers are open daily from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Central Daylight Time
When registering, the following information is helpful to have on hand:
- Address of the location where the damage occurred (pre-disaster address).
- Current mailing address.
- Current telephone number.
- Insurance information.
- Total household annual income.
- Routing and account number for checking or savings account (this allows FEMA to directly transfer disaster assistance funds into a bank account).
- A description of disaster-caused damage and losses.
Disaster assistance through the federal government is designed to help survivors move their recovery forward by providing grants for basic repairs to make their home safe, accessible and secure. FEMA assistance also may provide temporary help with a place for survivors and their family to stay while you create your own recovery plan, if your damaged home is inaccessible or uninhabitable.
Long-term, low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) also may be available to businesses of all sizes, homeowners and renters to cover losses not fully compensated by insurance. SBA cannot duplicate benefits of other agencies or organizations. Applicants may apply online using the Electronic Loan Application (ELA) via the SBA’s secure website at disasterloanassistance.sba.gov. One-on-one assistance for residence call: 404-331-0333, extensions 2122 and 2106; assistance for businesses call: 404-331-0333 extension 2123. If you wish to complete a paper application contact the Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955 (800-877-8339 for the deaf and hard-of-hearing).