Residents in Berkeley, Oakland and Alameda County can apply for financial support from the Federal Emergency Management Agency at two in-person sites starting Friday.
Powerful winter storms in early January caused destructive mudslides in Berkeley, flooding at businesses and homes in Oakland and infrastructure damage throughout the county, which was added to a major disaster declaration for the state this week.
Residents can also apply for FEMA assistance online or by calling the helpline at (800) 621-3362.
FEMA’s direct assistance sites in Oakland and Dublin will open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily, Feb. 10 to Feb. 24. Applications for FEMA assistance are due on March 16.
The Oakland site is at 7001 Oakport St., across from the Oakland Arena. The Dublin site is at 4825 Gleason Dr., Dublin, near James Dougherty Elementary School.
Interpreters will be available in Spanish, Mandarin and Cantonese, according to Alameda County sheriff’s spokesperson Lt. Tya Modeste.
Useful information to bring to the disaster recovery site
- Before and after photos of impacted properties
- Know your social security number
- Contact information for people who were displaced in the storm
- Contact info, working telephone numbers and mailing addresses for FEMA to reach you
- Insurance information
- Bank routing number and account numbers to access funds if eligible
County officials are urging residents impacted by the winter storms to apply for help in person so they can get questions answered promptly and understand the status of their applications.
Available assistance at the disaster recovery sites will include subsidies, low-interest loans from the Small Business Administration, grants to cover medical and dental services, transportation, home repairs, property loss and tax relief. Residents are advised to submit insurance claims before they apply for FEMA funding if they have coverage.
Modeste said workers with FEMA, the county and the state Office of Emergency Services (CalOES) will be on site to answer questions.