6 days ago
Federal agencies come to Texarkana to provide in-person storm recovery aid
HOOKS, Texas (KTAL/KMSS) – Following a federal disaster declaration, a temporary Disaster Recovery Center has come to Texarkana to assist Miller County with storm recovery.
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'You have FEMA (Federal Emergency Managment Agency, SBA, Arkansas Department of Emergency Management all here on location where we can all work with you, get you started in your application process, and at the end of the day hopefully get you started on your recovery as quickly as possible,' says Chandler Weber with the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).
FEMA is primarily looking to fill in the gaps in assistance that insurance did not provide in the wake of severe weather between April 2nd and 22nd, which was covered by the disaster declaration.
'Anybody who had any damages to their homes, whether it be a broken window, roof shingles, roof torn off, any kind of damage to their homes. We're asking you to come and apply for FEMA assistance,' says Fabian Gutierrez with FEMA.
The SBA is offering low-interest loans of up to $2 million for businesses.
'We'd rather see a small business take a loan out with us than see them potentially have to shut their doors at the end of the day,' says Weber.
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But the money being offered to rebuild goes beyond businesses.
'The majority of our assistance actually goes to the individual,' says Weber, 'We can offer up to $500,000 for physical damage that happened to their property, with an additional $100,000 for personal property. And that can cover anything from your personal vehicle to the clothes in your back.'
FEMA says to be prepared to provide personal information and a list of what was damaged.
'They have an inspector that will go out and be able to take a look at the home, take a look at the damage, and within 10 days or so, we'll be able to get back with you on what exactly we may be able to offer you.' says Gutierrez.
The purpose of having representatives available in person, though, is to make the entire process as easy as possible.
'So the biggest thing if you can just bring your driver's license and a little bit of patience just because at the end of the day you are going to sit down with the customer service representative, who's going to work you through the application process. They're going to answer all of your questions,' says Weber.
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The agencies will be at the Miller County State Survivor Assistance Location at 409 Hazel St in Texarkana, Arkansas from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. through Saturday, May 31st. The SBA says their application deadline for physical damage is not until July 21st though.
SBA applications can be submitted online at MySBA Loan Portal, and they can be reached at disastercustomerservice@ or 1-800-659-2955.
FEMA applications can be found at and they can be reached at 1-800-621-3362.
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