Disaster Recovery Center in Ocean City to Close Saturday

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Disaster Recovery Center at the Ocean City Community Center will close Saturday, April 27, and reopen Monday morning, April 29, as a Small Business Administration (SBA) Disaster Loan Outreach Center.

State and federal officials have been paying close attention to how many applicants are visiting disaster recovery centers throughout the state. Over the past weeks, the number of individuals seeking help at the Ocean City center has dropped, indicating the information needs of survivors in the area have mostly been met.

SBA representatives at the Disaster Loan Outreach Center will provide homeowners, renters, business owners and nonprofit organizations with face-to-face service in answering questions about SBA's low-interest disaster loan programs, completing loan applications, checking the status of applications and closing on SBA loans.

The SBA outreach center will be open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Saturday.

Those in the Cape May County area who want to visit a disaster recovery center can go to the Atlantic County disaster recovery center at:

Adjacent to Hamilton Mall

4403 Blackhorse Pike (Rt. 322)

Mays Landing, NJ 08330

Residents may choose to visit the remaining disaster recovery centers in New Jersey, located in Ocean, Atlantic and Monmouth counties. Survivors can locate the address of their nearest center by going to FEMA.gov/DRC or calling 800-621-3362.

FEMA staff is available at all the centers to provide clarification to FEMA letters, assist survivors with finding a temporary home if their primary residence was damaged or destroyed, check on the status of their application for assistance or refer survivors to other agencies that may provide additional help.

Also, survivors can consult with Small Business Administration customer service representatives about low-interest disaster loans to repair or rebuild their home and FEMA mitigation specialists about cost-effective rebuilding and repair techniques to reduce property damage in future disasters.

Survivors are reminded that May 1, 2013 is the last day to register for federal disaster assistance with FEMA.

Survivors can register online and check on the status of their applications at DisasterAssistance.gov, via smartphone or tablet at m.fema.gov. They also can call 800-621-3362 or TTY 800-462-7585. Those who use 711-Relay or Video Relay Services can call 800-621-3362.

For more information about the SBA, call the SBA Customer Service Center from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. (EDT) Monday through Friday, at 1-800-659-2955. Survivors may apply online at disasterloan.sba.gov/ela. Applicants also may visit the SBA Web site atsba.gov/services/disasterassistance or email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.

— News release from FEMA