HATTIESBURG, MS (WDAM) -
After President Obama declared Forrest and Lamar
County a federal disaster on Wednesday, FEMA has now opened two Disaster
Recovery Centers in Hattiesburg.
"This Disaster Recovery Center
was open within a couple of days of the declaration that the president made,"
said FEMA Public Affairs Officer, Jack Heesch. "We're very happy to be here
working with the state of Mississippi at the request of the governor to come
and try to provide as much help as we can to the survivors of these
tornados."
Families and individuals
in Forrest, Lamar, Marion, and Wayne County affected by Sunday's tornado are encouraged
to stop by one of the Disaster Recovery Centers to receive assistance.
"A very first step in getting yourself
back on the road to recovery is to come to FEMA and to see if you're eligible,
and for how much assistance you might be eligible to be able to begin the
reconstruction process if you will," said Heesch.
Before stopping at one of the centers, FEMA
encourage residents to register by calling 1-800-621-3362 or by going online to www.disasterassistance.gov, HERE.
"Then you can come in here
and meet with an applicant services representative who can explain to you what
the status of your application is," said Heesch. "From there we then will
schedule in the very near future for one of our inspectors to come look at the
damage, and begin to make assessments of how much damage there was, and what
assistance you might be eligible for FEMA."
Along with receiving
assistance from FEMA, the center is also staffed with professionals from MEMA,
and the U.S. Small Business Administration.
"The Small Business Administration
offers loans for up to 100% of your uninsured loss," said SBA Public Affairs
Specialist, Jack Camp. "If you didn't have insurance, or were underinsured, the
Small Business Administration can help you to fully recover for the
disaster."
The Red Cross is also
working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and also has a center
provided in the same building to help those in need.
"We welcome their
participation, that way it makes it much easier on the parties to be able to
find the help they need," said Heesch.
The two FEMA centers will
be open daily from 8 a.m. – 8 p.m. at:
Ben McNair Recreation
Center (Forrest County)
300 North 12th Avenue
Lamar Park (Lamar County)
226 Pinewood Drive
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