FAYETTEVILLE -- Federal emergency assistance workers are going door to door to get a firsthand look at damage sustained during the storms and flooding that hit the Northwest region in April and May.
"We're here to make sure those who sustained damage are able to get the assistance they qualify for," William Lindsey with the Federal Emergency Management Agency said Tuesday.
The agency is working with state and local emergency management agencies to identify people who may qualify for disaster assistance, Lindsey said.
Rick Johnson, deputy director with Washington County's emergency management agency, and Robert McGowen, Benton County's emergency services administrator, said FEMA officials visited with regional authorities last week before canvassing teams went into the field.
"I gave FEMA a list of everyone who reported damage in Benton County," McGowen said. "Based on that, the folks who are working for FEMA are going to go out and contact those people to review their claims for individual assistance."
Federal teams are in 13 Arkansas counties, including Benton, Carroll and Washington counties, Lindsey said. Lindsey asked that anyone who is contacted about damage make certain they are speaking with FEMA representatives.
"We would urge anyone contacted about disaster assistance to ask for identification," Lindsey said. "Unfortunately, disaster fraud is a problem. We try to combat it by making sure all of our people display identification and provide it to anyone who asks. If someone refuses to show their identification, we ask that people contact their local law enforcement agencies and tell them there's someone who says they're from the government who won't show their ID. We want people to do that as soon as possible."
The agency's teams will ask people who wish to make claims for Social Security numbers, the address of the damaged residence and type of damage, insurance policy information, current contact information, including a mailing address, and bank account and routing numbers for direct deposit, if desired, Lindsey said.
A disaster recovery center is also set to open at the airport terminal building at Drake Field, 4500 S. School Ave. in Fayetteville. John Luther, Washington County's emergency services director, said the on-site visits and the disaster recovery center are important steps in the recovery process.
"If they were affected by the flooding, we encourage them to go down there and talk to them," Luther said. "At this point, FEMA will work with the individuals on a case-by-case basis. This certainly gets us headed in the right direction."
Luther and Johnson said representatives from the federal Small Business Administration will also be at the disaster recovery center. People who had businesses damaged but who don't qualify for FEMA assistance may still work with the SBA on low-interest loans, they said.
Barry Moehring, Benton County judge, said the process seems to be working smoothly so far.
"FEMA has been incredibly cooperative, as has [the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management]," Moehring said. "They've given us a preliminary indication that what we've submitted meets their criteria."
Benton County likely will hire private contractors to do some repair work needed on county roads and bridges to allow the Road Department to keep to its planed schedule of road construction and repair, Moehring said.
"We just haven't figured out yet which projects that will be," Moehring said of any contracting work.
Pat Adams, justice of the peace and chairman of the Benton County Quorum Court's Transportation Committee, said time will be a factor in making some decisions since the county may qualify for more federal assistance if projects can be completed within 180 days of the disaster declaration.
"If the government is going to help us we need to get as much done as fast as we can," Adams said. "In that case, it makes sense to bring in outside help."
Metro on 06/30/2017