Wildfire Victims Have 4 Weeks To Apply For Federal Aid

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA — Authorities announced Friday that people in nine Northern California counties who lost homes or other belongings in wildfires have four weeks to apply for federal aid.

Residents of Lake, Sonoma, Santa Cruz, Solano, San Mateo, Napa, Monterey, Butte and Yolo counties are eligible for the aid.

The deadline is Oct. 21, 2020 to apply to the Federal Emergency Management Agency for the grants, which help eligible fire survivors pay for rent, home replacement or repair, and other disaster-related needs including replacement or repair of vehicles, funeral expenses, or medical or dental expenses. Applicants should save receipts and photograph damage to qualify for reimbursement.

FEMA, in its Friday announcement, said fire survivors need to contact their insurers and file claims for disaster-related damage before registering with the agency. People with insurance should register with FEMA even if they aren't certain they will be eligible for grants since the agency may be able to cover costs that insurance doesn't, the announcement said.

To register, people will need: social security numbers, insurance policy information, address of their damaged primary dwelling, a description of the damage or losses caused by the wildfires, a mailing address and telephone number, total household annual income, and a routing and account number for a checking or savings account.

People who do not register by Oct. 21 will not be eligible for the grants.

Fire survivors can register three different ways: online at disasterassistance.gov, through the FEMA app on a smartphone or tablet; or by calling FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362. The grants are available only for survivors of the wildfires that began Aug. 14, not for OCVID-19 related assistance.

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