09-04-2025
‘It's like survival mode': Deadline nears for hurricane survivors with FEMA hotel assistance
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — A wave of hurricane survivors are scrambling to find a place to live amid a looming deadline for FEMA hotel housing assistance.
It's been nearly six months since Hurricanes Helene and Milton hit, but Andrea Simhony is still in the beginning stages of restoring her St. Pete Beach condo.
The relentless surge and fierce winds left the interior of her unit in shambles.
'It's like survival mode,' said Simhony. 'I don't want to be on the streets. I refuse to sleep on the streets.'
The City of St. Pete Beach was inundated with permit applications following the storms.
The backlog delayed Simhony's ability to start her construction project.
'I don't have money to pay for a hotel every night,' said Simhony. 'I don't have anywhere else to go. Just extend us and give us more time because it was a big hold up with the permits at the beginning.'
She says the Plaza Beach Hotel has been a haven since all rooms were reserved for hurricane survivors.
However, her FEMA temporary sheltering assistance to cover the hotel cost will expire on Thursday.
'We're still trying to get our homes back together,' said Simhony. 'We're stressed out and trying to get our place back together.'
Marian Majewski is also a guest at the Plaza Beach Hotel and is still waiting to get a permit to repair her home in Treasure Island.
She is hoping FEMA will offer an extension so she can continue living in the hotel while her construction project gets underway.
'My biggest fear is not having a place to go,' said Majewski. 'I don't even have that option now.'
FEMA issued the following statement in response to questions from 8 On Your Side:
After an eligibility check, this week a significant number of households are no longer eligible for Transitional Sheltering Assistance (TSA). I cannot provide an exact number.
FEMA has tried to contact these households to give them with information about state and local housing and sheltering resources. Additionally, FEMA has substantially increased rental assistance to expand applicants' housing options.
Who remains eligible?
Households with Significant FEMA Verified Damage. These households have been verified by FEMA inspections as having sustained major or destroyed damage. Many of these properties require substantial repairs or full rebuilding, delaying the return to habitable conditions.
Households awaiting placement in the Direct Temporary Housing program.
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