Wilmington church hosts FEMA, SBA for benefit information briefing

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY)  — There has been a lot of rumors and questions raised regarding what FEMA can and cannot do when it comes to home recovery.

One local church hosted the disaster relief agency to lay out how they can help hurricane victims impacted by Florence.

Tonight, FEMA agents teamed up with members of the Small Business Administration to share information at Port City Community Church. FEMA spokesman Darrell Habisch talked with us about claims people were being denied benefits by the organization.

He says everyone who has been denied should be told why they were and should turn around and appeal to correct any errors that could have been made.

Most importantly he wants people to understand that FEMA cannot recover everything lost.

“We’re not designed by law to bring you back to a pre-disaster condition. We can’t rebuild your home, we can’t do all those things that we may want to but we may be able to help you out with some place to live. While you work with your insurance company. ”

The SBA offers low-interest, long-term loans for business owners and homeowners who qualify.

FEMA does not offer loans for disaster recovery individual assistance according to Habisch. They offer a limited number of grants. Qualified recipients, who have insurance, can only receive a max of $34,000 out of all the benefits.

If you have had your home damaged, FEMA says first file an insurance claim then apply after you know what insurance cannot cover.

Homeowners, renters and businesses should register for disaster assistance before visiting a recovery center by:

• Visiting DisasterAssistance.gov.
• Calling 800-621-3362 (TTY: 800-462-7585)
• Using the FEMA app, available for Apple and Android mobile devices at fema.gov/mobile-app.

The following information is helpful when registering:

• 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 direct transfer of funds into a bank account).
• A description of disaster-caused damage and losses.

Disaster survivors can visit any of the centers for assistance. Visit www.fema.gov/DRC to view other locations.