FEMA Opens Disaster Recovery Center in Lisle Thursday

Financial Assistance Available for Residents Affected by Flooding, FEMA Opens Disaster Recovery Center in Lisle Thursday

Wheaton ... DuPage County Board Chairman Dan Cronin urges residents affected by the recent flood to apply for federal assistance to help alleviate expenses incurred in the recovery process from the April storms.

“More than 9,000 DuPage County homes and businesses received extensive damage to their properties from the April flood. In an effort to help relieve some of the financial burden, the federal government is providing grants and low-interest loans to help cover some of the uninsured costs endured by families. I urge residents to apply for these grants and loans as they continue to work with their insurance companies during this recovery process,” said Cronin.

Throughout the past month, DuPage County’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management has worked with the Illinois Emergency Management Agency (IEMA) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to collect flood damage reports from residents and businesses. The information was then provided to the federal government, resulting in the presidential declaration. The declaration provides financial assistance to flood victims through grants to help with temporary housing, home repairs or replacement and other flood-related expenses. Low interest loans are also available to residents and businesses.

Residents can visit www.disasterassistance.gov or call 1-800-621-FEMA (3362) to apply for assistance. The toll-free telephone number will operate from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily until further notice.

For those who wish to apply for financial assistance in person, residents can visit the FEMA Disaster Recovery Center located at the Lisle Police Department, 5040 Lincoln Ave. The facility will be open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily until further notice. Even though the Lisle Police Department is housing the FEMA center, all questions pertaining to federal disaster assistance or the Disaster Recovery Center should be directed to FEMA at 1-800-621- FEMA (3362).

“We are pleased that FEMA is opening an office in DuPage County to assist our residents with their applications. Residents may find it more convenient to register directly with FEMA via phone or through the www.disasterassistance.gov website, as opposed to traveling to the Disaster Recovery Center in Lisle. They will receive the same kind of assistance from FEMA personnel as they would in person at the Disaster Recovery Center,” said Cronin.

For more information on how to apply for federal funding, visit www.ProtectDuPage.org.

The Federal Disaster Declaration Makes Assistance Available to Flood Victims

Governor Quinn Announces Approval of Federal Flood Relief for 11 Counties

Impacted Families Eligible to Apply for Grants and Low-Interest Loans; Businesses Can Apply for Low-Interest Loans

CHICAGO - Governor Pat Quinn today announced President Barack Obama has approved his request for federal assistance to help people and businesses in 11 Illinois counties recover from historic flooding in mid-April. The announcement comes just one day after Governor Quinn submitted his request for Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Fulton, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, LaSalle, McHenry and Will counties.

“I thank President Obama for his fast and responsive approval of our request for federal assistance to help families across Illinois recover from this devastating flood,” Governor Quinn said. “This quick action will help speed relief to the people of Illinois who suffered flood damages and help them begin rebuilding their lives.”

The federal disaster declaration will help people and businesses in the 11 counties by allowing them to apply for grants and loans to assist with storm-related losses.

Governor Quinn submitted a request for federal disaster assistance to President Obama on Thursday. The request was supported by damage assessment documentation that identified 41 homes in the 11-county area that were destroyed and 761 that suffered major damage. Thousands of additional homes were also affected by the floods. More than 3,500 homes in those counties were surveyed.

The federal disaster declaration makes assistance available to flood victims, including grants to individuals and households to help with temporary housing, home repairs or replacement and other disaster-related expenses, as well as low-interest SBA loans to residents and businesses

“We will begin working immediately with FEMA to ensure flood victims can get needed help as quickly as possible,” IEMA Director Jonathon Monken said.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which administers the assistance program, has a toll-free telephone number 1-800-621-FEMA (3362) or 1-800-462-7585 (TTY for hearing and speech impaired) for victims to apply for assistance. Registration can also be done online at www.disasterassistance.gov.

Damage assessments are continuing in many other counties hit by severe flooding and additional requests for federal assistance to help citizens in those counties are expected.

This Week's Meeting

This Week's Meetings

DuPage County Vendor Fair

Local businesses interested in working with DuPage County, but not sure how to make connections and secure contracts are invited to an upcoming networking event.  Read more here:

Local Businesses Invited to Learn How To Work With DuPage County

This Week's Meetings

This Week's Meetings

DuPage Opening Call Center Saturday for Unincorporated DuPage

DuPage Opening Call Center Saturday for Unincorporated DuPage Residents to Document Flood Damage

Wheaton … Starting Saturday, unincorporated DuPage residents and business owners are encouraged to provide information about their flood damage to the County to initiate a process to potentially access federal disaster assistance funding.

 

“Now that the rain seems to have stopped for the time being, residents and businesses can start to assess their properties. It is important that they document and photograph the flood damage to show proof of loss. Another step in documenting the flood damage is to report to the federal government the total loss to the entire county so that we can attempt to access federal funding,” said DuPage County Chairman Dan Cronin.

 

DuPage County will open a call center from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Saturday to gather information about property damage from residents who reside in unincorporated neighborhoods. The call center will re-open on Monday during regular business hours of 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Residents and business owners will be asked to provide specific information about where the flooding occurred, how much water entered the premises, structure damage and if they have insurance.

 

Residents who reside in a municipality should call their local government to provide the same information. The DuPage County call center is only for residents who reside in the unincorporated areas.

 

The information gathered from residents and business owners will be provided to the Illinois Emergency Management Agency as officials assess the entire state. The assessment could lead to a presidential disaster declaration that would provide reimbursements for uninsured property damage.

 

Cronin said the information provided by residents is essential in the county and the state seeking the federal funding.

 

For more information and to report flood damage to unincorporated areas, call (630) 407-6700.

 

Visit ProtectDuPage.org for more information about flood recovery and the potential for financial assistance.

DuPage Update Regarding Flood Event

DuPage Update Regarding Flood Event We are currently experiencing one of the larger storm events the area has seen in some time. The amount of rainfall produced by these storms has caused many inconveniences throughout DuPage County, including severe weather and flooding. Earlier today, I signed an emergency declaration to expedite the County’s accessibility to cleanup and emergency resources, including generators, pumps and sandbags. While the severe weather seems to have ceased for the time being, we are not out of the woods. We have yet to see peaks in the rivers and streams throughout the County, so the flood control facilities will stay in operation well into Friday. Accordingly, many roads remain impassible throughout the County. Although the DuPage County government campus was closed today, staff is continuing operations to ensure the safety of our residents. Stormwater Management has been closely monitoring and operating the flood control facilities and providing regular forecast updates and models. Their real time updates stream and facility updates can be found atec.dupageco.org/dec/stormwater/watershed/index.html. Likewise, the DuPage County Office of Emergency Management (OEM) has been running their Emergency Operation Center since Wednesday afternoon to inform and assist residents. In addition to providing information on road closures and safety tips, OEM partnered with the American Red Cross to maintain an emergency shelter at Benedictine University in Lisle for residents experiencing flooding or evacuations.  The County also provided more than 100,000 sandbags to municipalities for residents to protect their properties from flood water. We are also working with federal and state officials to access emergency assistance and resources both during and after this storm event. Residents are reminded to document flood damages with photos and save any receipts for damage-related materials. Most importantly, please stay safe this evening by following these recommendations: •          Avoid floodwaters. Do not let children play in the water. •          Be aware of areas where water has receded as roadways may have weakened. •          Avoid downed power lines and water where power lines may have fallen. •          Discard food that may have been contaminated. •          Check on sewage systems. If damaged, these can be a serious hazard. For more information about road closures, the emergency shelter, etc., please visitwww.ProtectDuPage.org. Here are some additional resources that may be helpful: DuPage County News & Updates National Weather Service for DuPage County Metra Service Updates Federal Aviation Administration Flight Delays DuPage County’s government campus will re-open tomorrow. In the meantime, please do not hesitate to contact the County at (630) 407-6500 with any questions or concerns. Sincerely, Dan Cronin DuPage County Chairman