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Hurricane Sandy - One Week Later – More than $210 Million Approved in Individual Assistance
One week ago today, millions of Americans from North Carolina to Maine braced for Hurricane Sandy. For more than 12 hours, hurricane and tropical storm force winds, storm surge, and flooding impacted 12 states; and more than eight million people lost power. Transportation systems in New York, Philadelphia, Boston, and Washington, DC came to a halt, and more than 12,000 commercial flights were grounded. And for the first time since 1888, the New York Stock Exchange was closed for two consecutive days because of a natural disaster. But we are a resilient nation:
As of 3 p.m. Monday, November 5, more than 234,000 individuals in Connecticut, New York and New Jersey have registered for assistance, and more than $210 million has been approved in FEMA Assistance. Individuals and businesses should visit www.disasterassistance.gov for more information on how to register with FEMA.
- Disaster Recovery Centers continue to open in the hardest hit areas. Twelve Disaster Recovery Centers are open in New York, two in New Jersey and three in Connecticut and more continue to open.
· To find a disaster recovery center location, check out the disaster recovery center locator at FEMA.gov/disaster-recovery-centers or by mobile phone at m.fema.gov.
· To search for emergency shelters operated by the American Red Cross, you can visit the Red Cross website.
- In support of New York and New Jersey, FEMA has transferred resources such as food, water, and fuel to the states to distribute to individuals at Points of Distribution (POD) sites. These POD sites can be located by visiting: http://www.nyc.gov/html/index.html; www.nyc.gov/html/misc/html/2012/foodandwater.html; http://nj211.org/hurricane.cfm; http://statenislandusa.com/; http://www.governor.ct.gov and http://www.governor.wv.gov/Pages/StormUpdate.aspx.
- Specialists from the state, FEMA and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) are on hand to answer questions and provide information on the types of assistance available to survivors.
- FEMA has activated, at the request of the states, its Transitional Sheltering Assistance program for New Jersey and New York. This program allows eligible survivors who cannot return to their homes due to damages caused by Hurricane Sandy to stay in participating hotels or motels until more suitable housing accommodations are available.
Looking ahead to the winter storm forecasted to hit the East Coast Wednesday evening, FEMA is urging residents to be safe as cold weather temperatures threaten areas impacted by the Hurricane Sandy. The risk of fires increases with the use of supplemental heating, such as space heaters and any fuel-burning appliances in the home, including furnaces and fireplaces, are a potential carbon monoxide source. Ensure both smoke and carbon monoxide alarms are working and if using a generator keep it as far away from your home as possible – away from doors, windows or vents that could allow deadly carbon monoxide into the home.
For further information regarding these safety tips or other post hurricane safety recommendations, visit www.fema.gov or www.ready.gov.
We want to hear your suggestions on how we can improve our communications to you, be sure to email us at citizencorps@dhs.gov.