Six Federal Emergency Management Agency representatives came Sept. 23 to the Island Library.
Each of the reps hosted a person seated across from them at their table, going over what Hurricane Irma wrought at their homes.
Some of the FEMA clients were checking on the status of their applications for assistance. Some people were being registered into the FEMA system for the first time.
A few were told to visit the Disaster Recovery Center at Hillsborough Community College, 6437 Watson Road, Riverview.
All had questions and concerns about how FEMA could help them.
FEMA has been sending crews out across Florida counties to check on people affected by Hurricane Irma, answer their questions and guide them through the process of registering for aid after Irma.
Melinda Russos, crew leader of the FEMA team deployed to the Manatee-Hillsborough region, said the majority of people in this part of the state come with questions about downed trees and power lines.
“That’s a county issue,” she said, unless the fallen tree damaged your house. If you’ve experienced property damage or a blocked driveway from trees downed by Hurricane Irma, she said, FEMA will help.
FEMA also can help people having difficulty paying grocery bills or replacing lost food through the D-SNAP program, a special extension for disaster victims of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. “That’s a big one,” she said. However, Russos cautioned, the program is not indefinite and those looking for aid should apply sooner rather than later.
If your house can’t be lived in, FEMA can help provide housing assistance, placing you in a hotel or helping with a rental home or apartment, she said.
If you need to re-purchase medical supplies, that can be covered, and if your car was damaged by the storm, FEMA can help you obtain help replacing your vehicle.
And if you’re out of work because of the hurricane, Russos said, FEMA also can help you register with the state for unemployment benefits.
The details of how much you can get, whether you’re eligible and what you’re eligible for are determined on a case-by-case basis, Russos said.
Russos said a variety of expenses could be reimbursed, from generator purchases to hotel reservations by FEMA after the hurricane. Keep all receipts and, if you’re curious about whether you can get reimbursed, present them to FEMA by fax or at the DRC, she said.
Seeking aid after the hurricane
On Sept. 23, Holmes Beach resident Gillian Kendall visited the FEMA representatives at the Island Library to see what they could do about damages at her home in the Seaside Gardens area of Holmes Beach.
She said the storm had completely shattered the fiberglass roof over the deck and scattered its shards throughout her and her neighbor’s backyard.
Some eves at the front of her house also were damaged, she said, as was the cover of her hot tub. But despite the property damage, she said she remained “very, very grateful” it wasn’t worse.
“I came home Monday to power and everything intact inside,” Kendall said.
She originally had planned to stay put for the hurricane, but the growing threat of storm surges and a mandatory evacuation forced her to switch gears.
“I stayed in three different places over three nights,” she said. “The storm seemed to follow me.”
First, she said, she fled to East Bradenton – but then a nearby river susceptible to surges became a concern. She traveled next to St. Petersburg, but by Sunday, Sept. 10, it looked as though that city would get a direct hit. For the last night of her evacuation, she said, she stayed just north of Tampa.
“Our fear just kept mounting,” she said. “I live in the smallest home in Holmes Beach … it’s two rooms, 3 feet above sea level. I was expecting to come home to a swamp.”
The lesson of the storm? “I’m gonna get flood insurance,” she said.
Kendall said she was “so impressed” with the aid FEMA provided Sept. 23.
“I thought it was going to be a nightmare” seeking disaster relief, she admitted. But the FEMA representative who helped her was “polite, knowledgeable, efficient, plus I think they’re gonna give me some money,” she said.
Not all who visited FEMA had a positive experience.
Kathryn Sandberg, who also lives in the Seaside Gardens community, said FEMA was unable to register her due to system difficulties related to her address, which is in a duplex.
Instead, they recommended she visit the DRC to get registered for her financial needs.
“I think they need more training,” she said.
The 17-year resident of the island said that while she evacuated to Lakewood Ranch, her shed was destroyed by the hurricane’s winds and her roof was significantly damaged. In addition, she said, a painting dropped from the wall and shattered.
She said power was out in her home for six days and she had to throw away much of her food.
“I’m going to talk to my husband,” she said about her plans moving forward as she repeated, “I think they need more training.”