Almost 90,000 Buncombe County residents have asked for FEMA help

The deadline to apply for FEMA assistance is Feb. 6.

By Dee Pridgen January 16, 2025 4:46 pm

Associated Press(AP Photo/Chris Carlson, file)FILE- North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, right, and Deanne Criswell, Administrator of the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency, await the arrival of Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris for a briefing on the damage from Hurricane Helene, at Charlotte Douglas International Airport, Oct. 5, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson, file)

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — FEMA has been busy in Buncombe County. If you still need help recovering from Tropical Storm Helene, you have until Feb. 6 to apply for FEMA aid at DisasterAssistance.gov and Disaster Unemployment Assistance at des.nc.gov.

According to FEMA officials, 86,945 individuals in Buncombe County have registered for help and 4,928 businesses from across the state have applied for help. 828newsNOW has asked FEMA for information related to the number of individuals who have not received help. This story will be updated with that information as soon as it’s available.

The North Carolina Disaster Case Management Program is available to guide individuals and households in Buncombe County through the Helene recovery process. Residents can complete an initial needs assessment; a case manager will work with them to make a personalized recovery plan and connect them with available resources.

To get started, call 844-746-2326 or fill out the NC-DCM intake survey at www.ncdps.gov/helene/dcm.

Helene recovery numbers statewide (as of Jan. 16)

Disaster Recovery Centers (DRC)

Number of centers open: 14
Total number of visitors: 59,930

Disaster Survivor Assistance Program

Number of homes visited: 132,598
Number of survivor interactions: 58,719

Disaster Unemployment Assistance

Funds dispersed $11,257,550

Transitional Sheltering Assistance (hotels/motels)

Individuals checked in: 6,127
Households checked out: 10,370

FEMA Housing Support – Mobile Housing Units/Travel Trailers

Licensed in: 117
Vacated (returned to stable housing): 4

Individuals and Household Programs

Number of households receiving rental assistance: 954
Funds allocated for rental assistance: $2,648,546
Number of Individual Assistance Program applicants: 279,110
Individual Assistance funds provided to survivors $305,746,811

Private Roads and Bridges

Number of projects funded: 4,164
Individual Assistance funds allocated: $11,127,259

Debris Management

Cubic yards removed: 3,114,857
Waterway debris removal: 23,437

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