Hurricane Sandy Recovery Resources and Services
Dear Friends,
1. Disaster Relief Guides
2. FEMA
Qualified persons affected by Sandy (homeowners, renters, and businesses) can apply for federal disaster assistance. Register at www.disasterassistance.gov or www.fema.gov/Sandy by calling FEMA at 800-621-3362 (FEMA).
Before you call, be sure to have the following information ready:
• Address of affected property
• Insurance information
• Social Security Number
DEADLINE TO APPLY FOR FEMA BENEFITS HAS BEEN EXTENDED: WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 27th, 2013
Click HERE to apply for FEMA disaster assistance.FEMA has established a dedicated line for language assistance “1-866-333-1796”. In addition to English and Spanish, a total of 18 languages have been identified in New York: Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Haitian-Creole, Hebrew, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Urdu, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Tagalog, Turkish, Vietnamese and Yiddish. The new number is dedicated to help disaster survivors who speak any of these 18 non-English languages obtain language assistance while communicating with FEMA’s National Processing Service Center.
FEMA has translated its English language booklet, “Your Guide to Disaster Assistance Programs,” into more than 12 languages. The document provides information to help disaster assistance applicants understand eligibility requirements for federal disaster aid programs. FEMA teams are distributing the booklets in affected areas and at disaster recovery centers throughout the 13 designated counties in New York.
Booklet is available in Arabic, Chinese, French, Greek, Haitian-Creole, Hebrew, Hindi, Italian, http://www.fema.gov/japanese> Japanese, Korean, Laotian, Hmong, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Tagalog, Thai, Urdu, Vietnamese, and Yiddish. Please click here for more info.
While the Immigration Hotline continues to provide valuable immigration law information, you can also ask questions about various disaster relief services by calling the same number. Their counselors speak 16 languages with the option for interpretation services in over 100 languages.
The EIIC (Emerald Isle Immigration Center) has been involved in many areas assisting existing clients with assistance since the aftermath of Sandy. A temporary staffer has been added to the team at EIIC and anyone with a Sandy related enquiry can reach out to Ultan Gallagher at 718/478-5502 Ext. 218 or via email at socialworktrainee@eiic.org.
Ultan is also coordinating efforts and referring Sandy victims who need assistance with Insurance claims and queries to FEMA to a consortium of qualified Irish and Irish American legal experts who are volunteering their time pro bono as members of the IABANY (Irish American Bar Association of NY) & Brehon Law Society groups. For more information, go to the Emerald Isle Website: http://eiic.org/
4. Mold Remediation
The ongoing effects of mold continue to be a major health concern for Sandy victims. Learn more about how to clean mold and health effects related to mold at:
5. Small Business Administration (SBA) Loans:
SBA provides loans to homeowners, renters, businesses, and private non-profit organizations to repair or replace real estate, personal property, equipment and business assets that have been damaged in a disaster like Hurricane Sandy.
For more information about SBA’s disaster assistance programs, visit www.sba.gov/disaster call our disaster assistance center at 1-800-659-2955, or email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.
6. Mental Health Resources
Great list of resources from the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene on dealing with Stress from Disasters and helpful resources to help keep your peace of mind: http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/em/emergency-coping.shtml
7. Help with Accessing Government Benefits Like Medicare and Others:
For help with Government Benefit Access, there are some great resources available from the good folks at the Community Service Society: http://www.cssny.org/pages/hurricane-sandy-relief
And for help specifically with Medicaid and other health related concerns, there are some resources from Community Health Advocates: http://www.communityhealthadvocates.org
Both of these organizations have put together a couple of PDF guides to services:
8. Support from USCIS for Lawfully Present Immigrants
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) reminds customers affected by Hurricane Sandy of certain U.S. immigration benefits or relief that may be available to them.
For more info please click here: http://www.thenyic.org/disaster-relief/tempmeasures
9. Day Laborers Are an Invaluable Support in Cleanup Efforts.
If you are working with day laborers helping in post-Sandy recovery, there are some excellent resources available to help your work.
If you know folks looking for workers to help out, this is a great resource for locating trusted and respected worker centers in your area: http://hireadaylaborer.org/hurricane-relief/
A great flyer on post-flood safety for workers from NDLON in Spanish: http://www.scribd.com/doc/113399368/Inundaciones
10. American Bar Association Disaster Legal Services Program
Through the Disaster Legal Services Program, the ABA Young Lawyers Division (ABA YLD) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) provide immediate temporary legal assistance to disaster survivors at no charge.
For more info please click here: http://www.thenyic.org/disaster-relief/ABA-YLD
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