FEMA opens disaster recovery centers in Many, Karnack

KARNACK, TX (KSLA) - Among FEMA's newest disaster recovery centers are 1 opened today in Sabine Parish, La., and one added in Harrison County, Texas.

The Sabine Parish center is in Many Town Hall, 965 San Antonio Ave. in Many.

The Harrison County center is at T.J. Taylor Community Center, 15642 FM 134 in Karnack, Texas.

Hours for the Many center are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday until further notice.

The Karnack center is open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays until further notice. It is closed on Sunday.

Both centers are set up to aid people whose homes or businesses were affected by last month's severe storms, flooding and tornadoes.

Representatives of FEMA, the Small Business Administration, state offices, volunteer groups and other agencies generally are at the centers to explain disaster assistance programs and to help people apply for the aid.

Disaster assistance can include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-interest loans to cover uninsured property losses and other programs to help individuals and business owners recover.

Click here to view a map of Louisiana parishes declared as disaster areas. Here is a map of Texas counties under a federal disaster declaration.

It is not necessary to visit a disaster recovery center to register for and receive federal disaster assistance. If possible, storm survivors should register with FEMA before visiting a disaster recovery center.

To register, visit the website disasterassistance.gov or call FEMA's toll-free helpline at (800) 621-3362. The phone lines are open daily between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m. until further notice.

Low-interest SBA disaster loans are available to businesses of all sizes, including landlords, private nonprofits, homeowners and renters. Disaster loans cover losses not fully compensated by insurance or other recoveries.

To learn more about such loans, call the SBA's disaster assistance customer service center toll-free at (800) 659-2955 or, if deaf or hard of hearing, (800) 877-8339, send email to DisasterCustomerService@sba.gov or visiting the SBA's disaster assistance website.

More information is available by visiting this FEMA website or, for Louisiana, this one and, for Texas, this one.

Click here for more information about SBA disaster programs.

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