Eastern Iowa counties, including Benton, Cedar and Tama, that sustained damage in the Aug. 10 derecho storm have been approved for the Federal Emergency Management Agency Individual Assistance Program, Gov. Kim Reynolds announced Tuesday.
Individual assistance can help disaster-affected homeowners, renters and businesses to maximize recovery, including assistance with housing, personal property replacement and medical expenses. Linn County was approved for Individual Assistance on Aug. 20.
Individual assistance programs and services now are available to individuals and business owners in those counties as well as Boone, Jasper, Marshall, Polk, Poweshiek, Scott and Story counties. Linn County was approved for Individual Assistance on Aug. 20.
Residents in the 11 counties approved for the Individual Assistance Program may apply online at disasterassistance.gov or by calling the FEMA helpline at 1- (800) 621-3362. TTY users can call 1- (800) 462-7585.
In her Aug. 16 request for a presidential disaster declaration, Reynolds requested 27 counties be approved for individual assistance. Through further assessment and validation by the state and FEMA, it was determined 16 of those counties did not have sufficient damage to be approved for the Individual Assistance Program, including nine counties that withdrew from consideration: Audubon, Clarke, Grundy, Iowa, Jackson, Jones, Madison, Muscatine and Washington.
The Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program no longer is available in counties where the FEMA Individual Assistance Program has been made available. Visit the Iowa Department of Human Services website for more information.
In addition, damage in eight counties is being validated before requesting inclusion in the FEMA Public Assistance Program, providing assistance to public entities and select nonprofit organizations.
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The following counties likely will be submitted in the next few days for approval for Public Assistance Program funding: Greene, Grundy, Guthrie, Hardin, Iowa, Jackson, Keokuk and Washington.
If approved, these counties will join the following 16 counties that were approved for Public Assistance funding on Aug. 17 by President Donald Trump: Benton, Boone, Cedar, Clinton, Dallas, Jasper, Johnson, Jones, Linn, Marshall, Muscatine, Polk, Poweshiek, Scott, Story and Tama.
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