November 7, 2017

FEMA: New or Extended Federal Programs Available to Help Virgin Island Hurricane Survivors

Several new or extended federal programs are available to help eligible Virgin Islanders recover from hurricanes Irma and Maria.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and its federal partners continue to support efforts by the U.S. Virgin Islands territorial government to help get hurricane survivors on the road to recovery. Survivors should be aware of these programs:
Food Assistance: Eligible survivors across the territory can begin applying for food aid under the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
(D-SNAP).

Help with Medicines: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is making the Emergency Prescription Assistance Program (EPAP) available for uninsured survivors to ensure they have access to medicines and medical equipment.

Disaster Unemployment Aid: The deadline to register for Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA) has been extended until December 29 for survivors who lost jobs as a result of Hurricane Irma or Hurricane Maria.

Temporary Roof Repairs: Operation Blue Roof is carried out by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) in partnership with FEMA and the U.S. Virgin Islands government to provide homeowners affected by the hurricanes with fiber-reinforced blue plastic sheeting to cover their damaged roofs until permanent repairs can be made.

FEMA Individual Assistance: Hurricane survivors now have until December 18 to register with FEMA for potential recovery aid under the Individual Assistance (IA) program, as FEMA has granted the territorial government’s request to extend the registration deadlines for the two hurricanes and make them the same for both disasters.

Disaster Loans: The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has extended its deadline to December 18 for homeowners, renters and business owners to apply for low-interest disaster loans for hurricanes Irma and Maria.

Rental Repairs: To help disaster survivors find a safe and secure temporary place to live, FEMA’s Multi-Family Lease and Repair (MLR) program is calling on owners of multi-family dwellings that are in need of repairs.

This post was originally published here.