The Federal Emergency Management Agency is opening three disaster recovery centers on Long Island to help home and business owners still recovering from damage caused by Irene two weeks ago.
The centers will be at the Mitchell Field Sports Complex on Charles Lindberg Boulevard in Uniondale, the H. Lee Denison Building on Veterans Memorial Highway in Hauppauge and at the Riverhead Fire Department, 540 Roanoke Ave., Riverhead.
“The new Disaster Recovery Centers in Nassau and Suffolk counties will help provide a lifeline for families, and help put more of the resources we need on the ground,” said U.S. Sen. Gillibrand (D-NY).
The centers will be staffed with specialists who provide information and answer questions about various types of storm-related assistance. They will be open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week, except for the Riverhead center, which will be closed Sundays.
The Hauppauge center opened Friday, the Riverhead center will open Monday and the Uniondale center will open Saturday.
Those seeking assistance from the center can register with FEMA before visiting by calling the FEMA Hotline at 800-621-FEMA (3362), register online at DisasterAssistance.gov or with any PDA device at m.fema.gov.
“Before visiting a recovery center, I strongly recommend people seeking assistance, to register with FEMA beforehand,” said FEMA Federal Coordinating Officer Philip E. Parr. “Having spoken with or contacted state or local officials does not count. You must register with FEMA in order to apply for help.”
Homeowners will need to bring a general description of the damage, the Social Security number of any family member living in the home, the extent of insurance coverage and certain other documents needed to expedite the process.
Representatives from the Small Business Administration will be on hand to explain the low-interest loan packages available to individuals, nonprofits and businesses of any size that have suffered damage or flooding.
Irene was a category 1 hurricane that downgraded to a tropical storm just before it hit New York City and the Island, causing widespread flooding and knocking down thousands of trees that caused blackouts for about half of LI, some for more than a week.