TRANSCRIPT:
Czar: Daniel, you gave me a behind-the-scenes tour of the disaster relief center in Versailles. It's just one of the centers offering assistance to victims of flooding in February and April. And Daniel, you really have made this a one-stop shop.
Bernardy: Yep. You took the words right out of my mouth. One-stop shop. Yeah. So, what's great about going into a disaster recovery center is, you know, you've got your American Red Cross in there. You've got the Small Business Administration, you've got someone from Hazard Mitigation, you know, you've got that opportunity to sit down across from a human like you, and I right now and just tell your story, you know, which you can do over the phone as well. But, you know, there's something about having someone sit there, look you in the eyes, and with empathy, hear your story and triage your unique situation.
See, we know and realize that nobody's recovery is going to look the same as anybody else's. Nobody was affected the way that anybody else, it’s completely unique.
And so, by coming in, telling us your story, we really do triage that situation, that unique situation, say, hey, this is what you might be eligible for. Let's take care of that here. And why, like, why you're here, why don't you go to that table that's right next to me and talk to Jane from small business administration and get that low-interest loan that might help you get your business going again.
Czar: You talked about the Red Cross and the business loans. Talk about some of the other services that are here, including mental health.
Bernardy: Right. So, some of the programming that the types of assistance that could be available to you if you come and talk to us, obviously, one of the big ones is housing assistance. Now this would be for either renters or homeowners. So, you know, for example, if you're a renter, you may have lost, you know, your clothing may have been inundated and is no longer wearable. It's covered in toxic mold. That is something that may be eligible for replacement. Maybe you lost a computer, maybe you lost a vehicle. All of those are things that can potentially be replaced. They just need to have been owned before the incident date.
And, you know, if you're a homeowner, there's anything for maybe you've lost a sheet of drywall or maybe you lost everything. And I think that's a really important distinction too is that, you know, a lot of people won't come in and talk to us because they're afraid they don't have it as bad as the person across the street from them. But why not apply if you're eligible?
Czar: One thing to note is you do not have to go to one that is in the county affected. You can go to any location.
Bernardy: That's right. Thank you for asking that. Go to the one that's closest to you. You can apply at any disaster recovery center.
Czar: Where are the locations?
Bernardy: It's an important distinction there between the February and the April floods because when we're talking about the April floods, there are 13, what we call designated counties that are all across the Commonwealth from McCracken all the way out as far east as, Clark. Those opened in response to the April floods.
Usually, when there's a disaster, there will be what we call a disaster recovery center that opens in each county that was designated. That being said, the other 10 that are open in Central and Eastern Kentucky as far east, as Pike County, if for some reason you're displaced and you find yourself at any disaster recovery center, you can apply for either disaster under the same roof, if that makes sense.
So, really, the easiest way since we have 23 open right now across the Commonwealth in total, the best way to find the one closest to you is to go to fema.gov/drc and just plug in your address and figure out the one that's closest to you. That might help you get your business going again.
Czar: What should people bring with them when they come here if they have it available?
Bernardy: So, in most cases, it's going to depend on your road to recovery in terms of what exactly we need from you. A great start would be your identification, your social security number, and I would certainly bring in a utility bill or something that proves where you live. And then depending on the types of assistance that you're eligible for, we may ask for other things. It would be a good idea to bring in your receipts, documents from insurance claims, denial letters, that kind of thing.
Czar: What do people need to do, we've had several contact us and that I've met out in the field that, they've lost their paperwork?
Bernardy: There are lots of resources through fema.gov to help folks walk through that tedious and awful process of having to replace vital documents.
Also, of note is a program that we have going on, speaking of other precious things, where we have a preservation team. So, FEMA joined up with the Smithsonian Institution, and we have teams out here at the Frankfurt Disaster Recovery Center and also at the end of this week on the ninth and the tenth at the Anderson County Disaster Recovery Center in Lawrenceburg where we will show people how to salvage, beloved lost heirlooms and photographs and artwork. So that is, yeah, that is also a really wonderful program to help people, you know, get that sense of normalcy back.
Czar: There was some initial confusion in North Carolina regarding payments that first went out to storm victims of $750. That's now 770, but that is not the only help that people can get. Correct?
Bernardy: Right. That is what's called, I believe you're referring to Serious Needs Assistance, and that is a one-time flexible payment, and it's not the only type of assistance that's available. Oftentimes, it's what people get at the beginning of a disaster because it can be dispersed relatively quickly. But, you know, it's not it's not necessarily, it's, we have a whole range of types of assistance that that's available.
Czar: That's run to the store, get diapers, get immediate clothes, things that you need, like, right now.
Bernardy: Yes. Medications, breastfeeding equipment, food, water, gas for your car, you know, what sounds like, serious needs.
Czar: Is there any other advice you have for storm victims?
Bernardy: You know, especially at this point in the life cycle of a disaster, you know, it's been a long time since the February floods. You know, maybe people have received denial letters. If that's the case, don't be discouraged. A denial letter does not necessarily mean it's the end of the road. In many cases, we're missing a document. We might just be missing a driver’s license or maybe we entered some information wrong on our end or what whatever. There could be any number of reasons why that denial letter was generated, and we have to get the right information in order for it to be rectified.
So, I think that the key is if you get a denial letter, don't panic. Read it from top to bottom, inside out, and come in and see us, and we can process your appeal here. If you disagree with the findings after coming through that, appeal.
Czar: Don't give up.
Bernardy: Don't give up.
Czar: I've been speaking with Daniel Bernardy, Public Information Officer for FEMA.
I want to note that this interview was done before Cameron Hamilton, FEMA's acting administrator, was terminated. We will follow up on how the change may affect assistance in Kentucky, if at all.
