Florida secures approval of major disaster declaration from FEMA, impacted residents can apply
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Today, the Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM) announced that Florida secured approval of a major disaster declaration for Hurricane Debby from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The declaration includes Individual Assistance for impacted residents in Columbia, Dixie, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Lafayette, Levy, Manatee, Sarasota, Suwannee and Taylor counties and Public Assistance for debris removal and emergency protective measures (Categories A and B), including direct federal assistance in Columbia, Dixie, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Lafayette, Levy, Madison, Manatee, Sarasota, Suwannee and Taylor counties.
The FEMA Individual Assistance Program may be able to help impacted homeowners and renters with serious needs such as displacement or temporary lodging. It also covers basic home repair costs and personal property loss or other disaster-caused needs. Impacted residents can apply by visiting DisasterAssistance.gov using the FEMA App or calling 800-621-3362 from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. ET daily.
FEMA’s Public Assistance Program provides supplemental grants to state governments as well as tribal territorial local governments and certain types of private non-profits so communities can quickly respond to and recover from major disasters or emergencies.
“I thank our hardworking members of the State Emergency Response Team for quickly gathering the information necessary to secure this declaration,” said FDEM Executive Director Kevin Guthrie. “Under the Governor’s steadfast leadership Floridians will never be left to fend for themselves after a disaster – we will continue to ensure every possible resource becomes available for impacted homeowners and businesses so that they may quickly recover and return to normalcy.”
FDEM remains in close contact with FEMA to complete damage assessments to determine if additional counties may be added to the declaration for individual or public assistance.
For more information on Hurricane Debby and available resources visit floridadisaster.org/updates and fema.gov/disaster/4806.