FEMA teams begin flood damage assessments

LYNN – More than 130 disaster housing inspectors under contract by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) have begun assessing damage for registered homeowners, renters and business owners in seven counties impacted by severe flooding that began March 12.Bristol, Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk, Plymouth, Suffolk and Worcester counties were declared as major disaster areas on March 29.According to FEMA, more than 9,000 damage inspection requests had been received as of Wednesday. About half the requests, or 4,269, have been completed and returned to FEMA. Most housing inspections are completed within four days after an inspection is assigned, said Peter Judge, spokesman for the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA).Residents in these counties must first register with FEMA if seeking assistance, said Judge, referring them to the Web site www.DisasterAssistance.gov and the toll-free FEMA phone number 800-621-3362.FEMA representatives are available 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week. Multilingual assistance is available. Once registered, applicants can easily stay in touch with FEMA to track their status online.In addition to federal disaster-assistance grants from FEMA, flood victims can apply for low-interest home and business disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration. Payments to individuals made to cover uninsured or under-insured disaster-related expenses include emergency home repairs, temporary housing, or assistance toward the replacement of a destroyed home.The damage inspection is free. A FEMA inspector will contact the applicant by phone to schedule an appointment. Property owners must also show proof of ownership. The average inspection takes 30 to 40 minutes. All FEMA employees and inspectors carry indentification cards.Official inspectors will never ask for money or use a vehicle bearing a FEMA logo. If money is requested for an inspection or an applicant feels someone is misrepresenting themselves as a FEMA inspector, local police should be notified.