Leonardo Disaster Recovery Center To Transition to SBA Loan Center

Leonardo, Little Egg Harbor and Manahawkin center will become SBA loan centers. Union Beach and Brick Township disaster recovery centers will remain.

FEMA announced Friday that three local Disaster Recovery Centers in Leonardo, Toms River and Little Egg Harbor will close Saturday, April 20, and transition into Small Business Administration Disaster Loan Outreach Centers. The decision was made after officials noted fewer people seeking help at the three centers, the agency said. SBA representatives at the Disaster Loan Outreach Center will take over April 22. They provide homeowners, renters, business owners and nonprofit organizations with face-to-face service in answering questions about SBA's low-interest disaster loan programs, completing loan applications, checking the status of applications and closing on SBA loans.  The SBA outreach centers will be open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday …

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Hurricane Sandy

Deadline to Apply for FEMA, SBA Extended to May 1

Deadline extension applies for homeowner, renter and business registration with SBA

Residents impacted by Superstorm Sandy now have until May 1 to register for individual disaster assistance through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), according to a prepared statement from the governor's office.  The deadline extension also applies for homeowner, renter, and business registration with the Small Business Administration (SBA) for Disaster Loan Assistance. Businesses applying for SBA Economic Injury loans still have until July 31 to apply. The loans are for businesses that did not suffer any physical damage, but lost revenue in Sandy's aftermath. State and federal offiicials have urged all residents and businesses affected by the storm, whether it was through flooding, wind damage or loss of business  revenue, …

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Hurricane Sandy

Flood Maps Could Change for Mainland Communities

During a Friday conference call discussing the National Flood Insurance Program, talk shifted to FEMA's flood maps and the potential for change in New Jersey.

The impetus behind releasing its advisory flood maps soon after Hurricane Sandy was simply to aid in the state's disaster recovery, a Federal Emergency Management Agency risk analyst said Friday, noting that they still remain subject to change prior to their official adoption into the National Flood Insurance Program. Discussion about the NFIP as well as the Advisory Base Flood Elevation maps was made during a FEMA conference call late Friday morning and seemed to conflict with Gov. Chris Christie's hurried effort to see the maps adopted as New Jersey's new standard.  Doug Bellomo, director of FEMA's Risk Analysis Division, said the agency used the best available scientific data to develop the maps, and while he's confident that they're …

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JMS

2:27 pm on Monday, April 1, 2013

@ Just wondering.. I am really at a loss for words.. I have not heard any such thing; we are a monmouth county agent and like I said I have a client in Toms River who is proceeding with his ICC claim, he was told no such thing; maybe you can bypass you're agent and contact the flood insurance company directly??? just a thought; I don't know who you have; maybe I would be of some assistance, lmk..   more ›

As April 1 Deadline Nears: Things Sandy Survivors Should Know

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) releases a tip sheet on seeking assistance in aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.

  Here is some helpful information New Jerseyans should know as they continue their recoveries from Hurricane Sandy. FEMA's mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards. Follow FEMA online at www.fema.gov/blog, www.twitter.com/fema, www.facebook.com/fema, and www.youtube.com/fema. Also, follow Administrator Craig Fugate's activities at www.twitter.com/craigatfema.  The social media links provided are for reference only. FEMA does not endorse any non-government websites, companies or applications. — News release from FEMA

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Hurricane Sandy

UPDATE: Christie Predicts FEMA Will Scale Back Flood Maps

Governor provides update on rebuilding, with focus on flood maps and Blue Acres buyout, and plenty of anecdotes

Gov. Chris Christie predicted the Federal Emergency Management Agency will scale back tough new flood maps it issued last December, according to news reports. Those maps place many more properties in flood zones, requiring many of them to be elevated if their owners don't want to see flood insurance rates soar, according to reports. The initial FEMA flood maps, which could create thousands more in insurance premiums and have residents raising their houses feet off the ground, are "too aggressive," said Gov. Christie at Thursday's town hall meeting. He was addressing a packed crowd of officials and residents in the Hurricane Sandy damaged town of Manasquan, and Christie returned to the complicated and controversial topic of what would …

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'Stop FEMA Now' Meeting Draws Large Crowd to Toms River Venue

Grassroots group that opposes FEMA's advisory base flood elevations issued after Superstorm Sandy gaining momentum

Superstorm Sandy survivors came by the hundreds Saturday to support the grassroots organization Stop FEMA Now today at the Silverton First Aid Squad building on Maine Street in Toms River. Residents packed the ambulance bay area and spilled out onto the driveway. Many stood for the entire meeting. "We need answers now," said George Kasimos, who organized Stop FEMA Now shortly after the Federal Emergency Management Agency released the advisory base flood elevation data.  "We need the answers from our local and state officials, but especially from FEMA. The governor has been handcuffed by FEMA. The governor can only do so much with one hand behind his back." FEMA's advisory base flood elevations are "riddled with errors," he said. "We want …

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Public Protests Potential Adoption of FEMA Flood Maps as Elevation Standard

New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection holds public hearing in Long Branch

A huge crowd came to Long Branch City Hall on Thursday evening for the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection's (DEP) public hearing, to protest the potential adoption of FEMA's advisory base flood elevation (ABFE) maps as the new elevation standard for the the state. The crowd was mostly comprised of many unhappy homeowners from around the state impacted by Hurricane Sandy in one way or another. "The thought of increasing flood insurance premiums into the tens of thousands of dollars is daunting," Toms River resident Margaret Quinn said. Quinn lives in the Silverton section of Toms River, and said her house was more than 50 percent damaged. She, like so many others, has been displaced by the hurricane, and is now faced with …

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Hurricane Sandy

FEMA Offers Rebuilding and Repair Advice

The ongoing workshops are being held in several home improvement stores throughout the area.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency is providing free advice on how to repair or rebuild your Hurricane Sandy-damaged home at several home improvement stores throughout the area. With an eye on rebuilding to mitigate future disaster damage, FEMA experts will be on hand to offer building techniques that can help protect homes, businesses and other properties.  Among the topics advice is being offered on are: •             Ridding a home of mold and mildew. •             Understanding flood- and wind-resistant building methods. •             Knowing the benefits of flood insurance. •             Elevating or anchoring utilities. Sepecialists are on hand today, Thursday, and Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday, Feb. 16 from 8:30 a.m…

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Hurricane Sandy

Months After Sandy, Insurance Still Not an Answer

Residents of Union Beach met with Rep. Frank Pallone on Tuesday to air grievances about insurance.

Randall Kidd’s story isn’t unique. A Union Beach resident, he’s faithfully paid into the National Flood Insurance Program for years, insuring his home against the kind of flood damage caused by Hurricane Sandy with a $217,000 policy he hoped would make him whole. After his home was destroyed by the late October storm, Kidd set about filling out the appropriate paperwork, meeting with adjusters who came in from out of state and waiting for the check to arrive so he could start to work. Finally, the check did come, but for $89,000, less than half of what contractors have told him it will cost to rebuild his home. In a crowded conference room at Union Beach’s municipal building, Kidd and other area residents met to find an answer, or at least…

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Hurricane Sandy

Video: HUD Secretary Joins Gov. Christie in Promise to Deliver Aid

The governor was joined by Shaun Donovan in Sea Bright Thursday afternoon.

The $1.8 billion recently allocated for use in Community Development Block Grants, or CDBGs, will be used primarily to help residents and small businesses affected by Hurricane Sandy recover, U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan said Thursday afternoon. Joined by Gov. Chris Christie in Sea Bright, Donovan said the funding is the first chunk of approximately $16 billion that will help homeowners along the East Coast rebuild, filling the gaps between aid provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and loans issued by the Small Business Administration (SBA). The grant funding is part of the more than $50 billion aid package approved by Congress less than a month ago.  With storms like Sandy, known, …

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Mrgrumpass

11:36 pm on Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Where is Mayor Kennady on this matter?   more ›