Hurricane Matthew Update: Assistance For Residents And Businesses

Disaster Assistance

President Obama has designated the following counties eligible for individual assistance: Beaufort, Bertie, Bladen, Columbus, Craven, Cumberland, Dare, Duplin, Edgecombe, Gates, Greene, Harnett, Hoke, Hyde, Johnston, Jones, Lenoir, Martin, Nash, Pender, Pitt, and Robeson, Sampson, Tyrrell, Washington, Wayne, and Wilson Counties. Individuals residing in these counties can register with FEMA to access federal assistance the following ways:

* Apply online at www.DisasterAssistance.gov,

* Download the FEMA mobile app,

* Call the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362 (FEMA). Applicants who use 711 or Video Relay Service (VRS) may also call 800-621-3362 to register. Persons who are deaf, hard of hearing or have a speech disability and use a TTY may call 800-462-7585.

Low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) also may be available to cover losses sustained by homeowners, renters, and businesses not fully compensated by insurance or other recoveries and do not duplicate benefits of other agencies or organizations.

ct the U.S. Small Business Administration's Disaster Assistance Customer Service Center the following ways:

* Register online at www.sba.gov/disaster

* Call 1-800-659-2955

* Email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov

FEMA/State Disaster Recovery Centers Open in Wilson and Nash Counties

North Carolina residents who suffered losses and damage as a result of Hurricane Matthew can get information about federal assistance at a disaster recovery center in Wilson County and Nash County.

Wilson County

Locations: DaVita Dialysis Center (Old Location)

2693 Forest Hills Road

Wilson, N.C. 27893

Hours: Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. (until further notice)

Monday - Saturday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Nash County

Location: The Imperial Centre

270 Gay Street

Rocky Mount, N.C. 27804

Hours: Monday - Saturday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Sunday, noon to 5 p.m.

Visiting with a recovery specialist is not a requirement for individuals seeking disaster assistance, but the centers are an excellent way for people to get answers to questions about disaster aid and registration assistance. Those impacted by the storm may go to the most convenient center, not necessarily one in their county.

Assistance for eligible individuals can include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, and for other serious disaster-related needs such as medical and dental expenses or funeral and burial costs.

For additional updates on hurricane recovery, call 2-1-1.

Transportation

For the latest updates on road closures, call 5-1-1 or visit www.ncdot.gov

North Carolina Assistance Programs

* United Way North Carolina 2-1-1: www.nc211.org/

* Salvation Army: (800) 725-2769

* Catholic Charities of Raleigh: (919) 790-8533

* Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) disaster resources: (202) 708-1112, TTY: (202) 708-1455 or http://portal.hud.gov

Employment Help

* Career One Stop: (877) 872-5627 or TTY (877) 889-5627, www.careeronestop.org

Food Needs

* North Carolina Food Services: (919) 855-4800 or www.ncdhhs.gov

* Feeding America: www.feedingamerica.org

* Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina: www.foodbankenc.org

* Albemarle Food Bank: www.afoodbank.org

* USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline for food safety: (888) 674-6854

Health and Human Services for Those in Need

* North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services: (919) 855-4800 or www.ncdhhs.gov

Help for Low-Income Families

* Help paying bills for low-income families: www.needhelppayingbills.com

Housing Needs

* Housing Assistance: www.nchousing.org

* Rural Development

* Multi-Family Housing Programs: (919) 873-2050

* Single Family Housing Programs: (919) 873-2051

Transportation

* Call 5-1-1 or use the ReadyNC mobile app for the latest updates on road closures

* North Carolina Department of Transportation: www.ncdot.gov

* Department of Motor Vehicles: (919) 715-7000

Unemployment Assistance

* Department of Labor: (866) 487 2365, TTY (877) 889-5627

* North Carolina Division of Employment Security: (866) 487 2365, TTY (877) 889-5627, www.ncesc.com

Tear Out, Cleanout, Debris Removal, Mold Remediation

* Baptist Men of North Carolina: (800) 395-5102 ext. 5605 www.baptistsonmission.org

* North Carolina Conference United Methodist Church www.nccumc.org, (888) 440-9167

Volunteer Opportunities

* www.ncvoad.org

Farmers and Livestock Producers

FSA offers disaster assistance and low-interest loan programs to assist agricultural producers in their recovery efforts following qualifying natural disasters. Available programs and loans include:

* Non-Insured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) - provides financial assistance to producers of non-insurable crops when low yields, loss of inventory, or prevented planting occur due to natural disasters (includes native grass for grazing). Eligible producers must have purchased NAP coverage for 2016 crops.

* Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP) - offers payments to eligible producers for livestock death losses in excess of normal mortality due to adverse weather. Eligible losses may include those determined by FSA to have been caused by hurricanes, floods, blizzards, wildfires, tropical storms, tornados lightening, extreme heat, and extreme cold. Producers will be required to provide verifiable documentation of death losses resulting from an eligible adverse weather event and must submit a notice of loss to their local FSA office within 30 calendar days of when the loss of livestock is apparent.

* Tree Assistance Program (TAP) - provides assistance to eligible orchardists and nursery tree growers for qualifying tree, shrub and vine losses due to natural disaster.

* Emergency Forest Restoration Program (EFRP) - The objective of EFRP is to restore non-industrial private forest land (NIPF) damaged by natural disasters. Cost-share assistance is provided to owners of NIPF that has been damaged by a natural disaster such as Hurricane Matthew.

* Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-Raised Fish Program (ELAP) - provides emergency relief for losses due to feed or water shortages, disease, adverse weather, or other conditions, which are not adequately addressed by other disaster programs. ELAP covers physically damaged or destroyed livestock feed that was purchased or mechanically harvested forage or feedstuffs intended for use as feed for the producer's eligible livestock. In order to be considered eligible, harvested forage must be baled; forage that is only cut, raked or windrowed is not eligible. Producers must submit a notice of loss to their local FSA office within 30 calendar days of when the loss is apparent.

* ELAP also covers up to 150 lost grazing days in instances when a producer has been forced to remove livestock from a grazing pasture due to floodwaters.

* For beekeepers, ELAP covers beehive losses (the physical structure) in instances where the hive has been destroyed by a natural disaster including flooding, high winds and tornadoes.

* Emergency Loan Program - Available to producers with agriculture operations located in a county under a primary or contiguous Secretarial Disaster designation. These low interest loans help producers recover from production and physical losses due to drought, flooding.

* Emergency Conservation Program (ECP) - provides emergency funding for farmers and livestock producers to rehabilitate land severely damaged by natural disasters; includes fence loss.

* HayNet -is an Internet-based Hay and Grazing Net Ad Service allowing farmers and livestock producers to share 'Need Hay' ads and 'Have Hay' ads online. Farmers also can use another feature to post advertisements for grazing land, specifically ads announcing the availability of grazing land or ads requesting a need for land to graze. www.fsa.usda.gov/haynet.

To establish or retain FSA program eligibility, farmers and livestock producers must report prevented planting and failed acres (crops and grasses). Prevented planting acreage must be reported on form FSA-576, Notice of Loss, no later than 15 calendar days after the final planting date as established by FSA and Risk Management Agency (RMA).

For more information on disaster assistance programs and loans visit www.fsa.usda.gov/or contact your local FSA Office. To find your local FSA county office, visit http://offices.usda.gov.

Read this original document at: http://butterfield.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/hurricane-matthew-update-assistance-for-residents-and-businesses