Oct 8, 2008 10:32 am US/Central
FEMA Opens Disaster Recovery Center On North Side
CHICAGO (STNG) ―
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has opened a Disaster Recovery Center (DRC) in Chicago to help serve residents and businesses affected by the remnants of Hurricane Ike last month.
The DRC is located at the Physical Education Building of Northeastern Illinois University, 3600 W. Foster Ave. It opened Tuesday and will operate from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., seven days a week until further notice, according to a release from FEMA.
Before visiting a DRC, residents are strongly encouraged to first apply for assistance online at www.fema.gov or by calling (800) 621-FEMA (3362). The toll-free numbers will operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For the hearing and speech impaired, call (800) 462-7585 (TTY).
Residents who have further questions and concerns can visit the DRC.
Services provided at the center include:
• Guidance regarding disaster recovery;
• Clarification of any written correspondence received;
• Housing Assistance and Rental Resource information;
• Answers to questions, resolution to problems and referrals to agencies that may provide further assistance;
• Status of applications being processed by FEMA;
• U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) program information, and
• Information from representatives of other federal, state and local agencies.
Residents visiting the DRC should bring identification, social security numbers, insurance information, proof of address and contact phone numbers in order to help speed up the assistance process.
FEMA along with the State of Illinois are opening additional DRCs to serve residents and businesses in Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, LaSalle and Will counties affected by the storm. The severe storms and flooding from the hurricane began to hit these counties on September 13.
(Source: Sun-Times News Group Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2008. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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