FEMA has made another number available for Morehouse Parish residents that suffered from damages to their homes during Hurricane Gustav.

FEMA representative Maxine Cavenaugh said the number has been set up for applicants to access information about their individual cases and for others to apply for assistance. The number is 1-888-294-2822.

Residents can also file a damage report by calling FEMA at 1-800-621-FEMA (3362) or through FEMA’s webiste at www.fema.gov. The website explains the individual assistance program is for people whose primary residence was affected and located in the disaster area. For speech- or hearing-impaired callers, use the TTY number 1-800-462-7585. 

Morehouse became eligible to recieve individual assistance from FEMA on Oct. 16.

James Mardis, director of Homeland Security for Morehouse Parish, said when talking with FEMA to make sure to have pen and paper handy to write down a case number and to “be prepared to talk for about 30 minutes.” 

Applicants need to have the following information when applying:

n Name and Social Security number

n Spouse’s Social Security number, if married

n Address of damaged property

n Insurance information

n Total household annual income

n A bank routing and account number for direct deposit

n A description of losses caused by disaster

n Telephone number

n Driving directions to damaged property

n Mailing address

After registering, each case will be looked at by the date it was damaged.

If the house is already fixed, Mardis said to have photos of the damage and receipts showing repairs for a FEMA inspection team.

For more information on FEMA’s assistance programs, visit www.fema.gov.