FEMA applications still coming, deadline looms
Published 6:27 pm Friday, June 10, 2011
More than a month after tornadoes devastated much of Alabama, applications for aid continue to roll in.
To-date, 448 applications for assistance have been filed to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) from Marengo County with more than $425,000 in approved funding. The figures released Tuesday represent the filing of seven additional applications since Friday with an additional $4,000 in funds granted.
“People’s situation can change,” FEMA Public Affairs Specialist Jim Homstad said of those applying later for help. “They may have been staying with friends or family and haven’t really addressed their own needs yet, or are just now getting to do that.”
Currently, 43 of Alabama’s 67 counties are designated for federal assistance from FEMA’s Individuals and Households Program. The designation applies to the severe weather and tornadoes in Alabama dating back to April 15. Assistance is available for disaster-related needs such as housing, loss of personal property, transportation and medical expenses.
The deadline for Alabamians to apply for federal assistance from FEMA and the U.S. Small Business Administration is Monday, June 27.
“Marengo is typical for the situation overall,” Homstad said of how the money has been applied and allocated. “Most assistance is going to housing needs. That is money to rent a new place or to fix damage to a home an things like that.”