Oklahoma, OK – State and federal assistance to help Oklahomans recover from the recent severe storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes and flooding now exceeds $35 million in combined funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) low-interest disaster loans.
FEMA’s Individuals and Households Program has approved more than $11.7 million in Individual Assistance for Oklahoma homeowners and renters. Individual Assistance can include grants to help pay for temporary housing, home repairs and other serious disaster-related expenses not met by insurance or other assistance programs.
Of the total approved so far, $10.3 million covers housing assistance with $1.7 million of that amount going to help pay rent for those whose homes were not habitable after the storm. Another $1.5 million has been awarded for Other Needs Assistance, which helps with losses and disaster expenses that can make it hard for people to get back on their feet, such as transportation, clothes for work and childcare.
Federal funding continues through the $12.8 million the SBA has approved for low-interest disaster loans for homes and businesses across the 27 disaster-designated counties in Oklahoma. The loans cover home repairs, replacement of physical assets damaged and small business operating expenses, among other costs.
Meanwhile, FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) has already paid out more than $10.8 million to 536 Oklahomans, representing only 30 percent of the flood insurance claims filed.
The designated counties for eligible applicants are Alfalfa, Canadian, Cherokee, Craig, Creek, Delaware, Garfield, Kay, Kingfisher, Le Flore, Logan, Mayes, Muskogee, Noble, Nowata, Okmulgee, Osage, Ottawa, Pawnee, Payne, Pottawatomie, Rogers, Sequoyah, Tulsa, Wagoner Washington and Woods.
Affected residents and business owners in these counties may apply for disaster assistance by calling FEMA's toll-free registration number, 800-621-FEMA (3362) or TTY 800-462-7585. An application may also be completed online by going to www.DisasterAssistance.gov.
In addition, applicants can visit a state/federal Disaster Recovery Center (DRC). The locations of DRCs in Oklahoma can be found at fema.gov/ESF6/DRCLocator.
To apply for SBA low-interest disaster loans, applicants can visit their nearest disaster recovery center for one-on-one assistance or apply online using SBA’s secure website at https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela.
In addition, applicants can get more information on SBA disaster assistance by calling SBA’s Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955, by visiting www.sba.gov/disaster, or by emailing disastercustomerservice@sba.gov. Individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing may call 800-877-8339.
Find out more at https://www.fema.gov/okmit and https://www.fema.gov/disaster/4438. Follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/femaregion6 and the FEMA Blog at http://blog.fema.gov.
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FEMA's mission is to help before, during and after disasters.
Disaster recovery assistance is available without regard to race, color, religion, nationality, sex, age, disability, English proficiency or economic status. If you or someone you know has been discriminated against, call FEMA toll-free at 800-621-FEMA (3362). For TTY call 800-462-7585.
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is the federal government’s primary source of money for the long-term rebuilding of disaster-damaged private property. SBA helps businesses of all sizes, private non-profit organizations, homeowners and renters fund repairs or rebuilding efforts and cover the cost of replacing lost or disaster-damaged personal property. These disaster loans cover losses not fully compensated by insurance or other recoveries and do not duplicate benefits of other agencies or organizations. For more information, applicants may contact SBA’s Disaster Assistance Customer Service Center by calling 800-659-2955, emailing disastercustomerservice@sba.gov, or visiting SBA’s website at SBA.gov/disaster. Deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals may call 800-877-8339.