BATON ROUGE, La. – Louisianans in 23 parishes designated for federal assistance are encouraged to register with FEMA as soon as possible if they sustained damage to their homes following the recent winter storms. The deadline to apply is May 10.
Disaster 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.
Residents who were temporarily forced from their homes because of utility failures should also register with FEMA. Reimbursement for hotel or other temporary rental expenses may be possible.
The 23 eligible parishes are Avoyelles, Bienville, Bossier, Caddo, Calcasieu, Catahoula, Claiborne, Concordia, DeSoto, East Baton Rouge, Franklin, Grant, LaSalle, Madison, Natchitoches, Ouachita, Rapides, Red River, Richland, Sabine, Webster, West Carroll, and Winn.
If you have insurance and are applying for disaster assistance, you must also file a claim with your insurance company as soon as possible. By law, FEMA cannot duplicate benefits for losses covered by insurance. If insurance does not cover all your damage, you may be eligible for federal assistance.
To apply:
- Visit www.disasterassistance.gov;
- Call 800-621-3362 (TTY: 800-462-7585). The toll-free telephone lines operate from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. CDT, seven days a week. Those who use a relay service such as a videophone, Innocaption or CapTel should update FEMA with their specific number assigned to that service; or
- Download the FEMA Mobile App by texting ANDROID or APPLE to 43362.
When you apply for assistance, have the following information readily available:
- A current phone number where you can be contacted;
- Your address at the time of the disaster and the address where you are now staying;
- Your Social Security number;
- A general list of damage and losses;
- If insured, the insurance policy number, or the agent and company name; and
- Cause of damage. The cause of damage for this disaster is ice/snow even if you had water intrusion due to melting ice or snow or power loss due to snow and ice accumulation.
Residents are asked to save any photos taken to document damage and any receipts from purchases related to the cleanup and repair.
Low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration are available to businesses, homeowners and renters. Call the SBA at 1-800-659-2955 (TTY: 800-877-8339) or visit www.sba.gov/services/disasterassistance.
For the latest information on Louisiana winter storms, visit www.fema.gov/disaster/4590. Follow the FEMA Region 6 Twitter account at twitter.com/FEMARegion6.