HARRISBURG, Pa. — More than $165.4 million in disaster relief is approved for Pennsylvanians struck by Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee. The news was announced by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA).
FEMA’s Individual Assistance Program approved $107.4 Million in grants to eligible applicants for temporary housing, home repairs, personal property losses and other disaster-related needs such as medical, dental and funeral costs. The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) approved close to $25 million in low-interest disaster loans and the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) contributed to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s recovery by settling $33 million in insurance claims.
This brings the total of amount of funds going to individuals impacted by the storms to $165.4 million.
“The level of funds approved means many residents and business owners are on their way to recovery,” said Federal Coordinating Officer Thomas J. McCool. “Getting the funds into their hands as quickly as possible is our goal.”
Mr. McCool’s comments were echoed by his counterpart at PEMA.
“Reaching this milestone of over $165 million is very meaningful,” said PEMA Commonwealth Coordinating Officer John Forr. “It tells us families and businesses will soon rebound from these disasters.”
To register for disaster assistance call 1-800-621-FEMA (3362) or TTY 1-800-462-7585. For those using 711 or Video Relay Service (VRS), call 1-800-621-3362. Operators are multilingual and calls are answered seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. You can also register online at www.DisasterAssistance.gov or by smart phone or tablet at m.fema.gov. If you have a disability and need help registering, don’t hesitate to contact FEMA to ask for help.
Here is a summary of disaster assistance at close of business, October 13, 2011:
- $107.4 million approved for Disaster Assistance;
- $99.3 million in housing assistance for personal property loss, medical costs and other serious disaster-related expenses not covered by insurance
- $8.1 million in personal property loss, medical costs and other serious disaster-related expenses not covered by insurance
- $25 million in SBA approved disaster loans;
- $33 million in NFIP claims settled;
- 79,473 individuals registered with FEMA for disaster assistance;
- 22 Disaster Recovery Centers (DRCs) including the counties of Berks, Bucks, Bradford, Chester, Columbia, Cumberland, Dauphin, Delaware, Lancaster, Lebanon, Luzerne, Lycoming, Montgomery, Northumberland, Philadelphia (2), Schuylkill, Snyder, Sullivan, Susquehanna, Wyoming and York (Bucks DRC closed on 10/12, Chester, Cumberland and Montgomery DRCs close at 7 p.m on 10/14);
- 20,425 visitors were helped at the DRCs;
- 66,449 inspections of damaged properties completed.
The following is a list of the DRCs with the number of applicants who visited to date.
Disaster Designated County: No. of Visitors
Bradford: 1223
Columbia: 1987
Dauphin: 2285
Lycoming: 1531
Luzerne: 1513
Wyoming: 1125
Sullivan: 516
Lebanon: 1733
Philadelphia (1): 2081
Susquehanna: 321
Lancaster: 407
Chester: 231
Montgomery: 635
Schuylkill: 434
Snyder: 317
Bucks: 1295
Philadelphia (2): 757
Cumberland: 115
Delaware: 1081
Northumberland: 558
York: 244
Berks: 36
