(HARTFORD, CT) – Governor Ned Lamont today announced that at his urging, President Joe Biden has approved his request for a presidential major disaster declaration due to the damage caused by the remnants of Hurricane Ida in early September.
The portions of the request that were approved today include:
- The FEMA Individual Assistance Program for Fairfield County and New London County, including the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation and the Mohegan Tribal Nation; and
- The Hazard Mitigation Grant Program for the entire state.
Governor Lamont’s request for the FEMA Public Assistance Grant Program is still pending completion of the FEMA Preliminary Damage Assessment. The governor is hopeful that the state will receive approval for that program soon.
“Approval of this declaration from President Biden will provide much-needed financial assistance to homeowners, renters, and business owners in the areas that were heavily impacted by the floods from this severe storm,” Governor Lamont said. “I thank President Biden and FEMA for their ongoing work with our administration to protect Connecticut from damage caused by dangerous weather.”
The FEMA Individual Assistance Program makes homeowners, renters, and business owners who sustained uninsured or underinsured damage to their property in Fairfield County and New London County eligible for federal disaster assistance. This may include grants for temporary housing and emergency home repairs to make housing safe, accessible, and secure. FEMA is unable to duplicate insurance payments and encourages survivors to file insurance claims for damage to their homes, personal property, businesses, and vehicles as soon as feasible.
The fastest and easiest way to apply for this assistance is by visiting disasterassistance.gov or by downloading the FEMA app. If it is not possible to apply online, call 800-621-3362 (TTY: 800-462-7585). The toll-free telephone lines are currently operating from 7:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. daily. If using a relay service, such as video relay service (VRS), captioned telephone service or others, please provide FEMA the number for the service. Survivors who may need to request an accommodation or have additional questions can call the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362 (TTY 800-462-7585) from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m., seven days a week. Help is available in most languages.
The FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant Program will help state agencies, local governments, and the tribal nations take actions that can reduce or eliminate long-term risk to people and property from natural disasters.