Illinois Assistance Tops $6.5 Million

Federal officials have approved more than $6.5 million in disaster assistance grants and loans in the first five weeks after President Bush issued a disaster declaration for two Illinois counties.

Iroquois and Livingston county residents who had damage from the severe storms and flooding Jan. 7 through March 14 could be eligible for disaster assistance, but they need to apply by the May 6 deadline to be considered.

Disaster assistance is still just a toll-free call away. To register, call the FEMA Helpline at 1-800-621-FEMA (3362) or TTY 1-800-462-7585 for the speech- or hearing-impaired. Both lines are available daily from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. (CDT). Applicants also may register on line at www.fema.gov.

Disaster recovery efforts through April 10 include:

• Exactly 1,226 individuals (homeowners, renters and business owners) already have applied for assistance - 730 from Iroquois County and 496 from Livingston.
• More than $3.5 million ($3,543,476) in grants has been approved in housing assistance for 756 applicants to be used for temporary disaster housing or to help make disaster-damaged, uninsured homes safe, sanitary and functional.
• A total of $661,841 in Other Needs Assistance (ONA) already is approved for 338 applicants to replace personal property and to help meet medical, dental, funeral, transportation and other serious disaster-related needs not covered by insurance or other federal, state and charitable aid programs.
• More than 210 home and business owners have returned their U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) application packets for low-interest loans. So far, the SBA has approved $2,308,300 for 66 low-interest loans.
• May 6 is also the deadline for applicants who were issued SBA low-interest loan applications to complete and return the packet. If applicants do not qualify for loans, they may be considered for other forms of assistance. They may qualify for the Other Needs Assistance program that is designed to help meet serious, disaster-related needs. However, applicants must complete and return the SBA loan applications. If they are not returned, they may not be considered for further FEMA assistance.