BATON ROUGE, La. – One hundred days have passed since torrential rains caused historic flooding in Louisiana. The August storms dumped an estimated seven trillion gallons of rainwater across southern Louisiana—more than four times the amount of water contained in Lake Pontchartrain.
Even before the floodwaters subsided, members of federal, state, and voluntary agencies quickly responded to provide disaster assistance. Signs of recovery are increasingly visible as disaster assistance funds and other forms of relief continue to reach survivors.
Assistance to Individuals
More than 153,000 individuals and families registered for FEMA disaster assistance.
Disaster Survivor Assistance (DSA) specialists visited affected neighborhoods to help survivors register for assistance.These specialists met face-to-face with nearly 125,000 individuals and registered more than 4,000 applicants.Survivors have also had the option to visit disaster recovery centers (DRCs) for registration and other assistance from representatives of FEMA, the U.S. Small Business Administration, and other organizations. More than 86,000 survivors have been assisted by DRC staffers.Survivors have received more than $729 million in disaster assistance through FEMA’s Individuals and Households Program.
Of that number, more than $575 million in housing assistance has gone to helping survivors find temporary housing solutions and rebuild their homes.Nearly $577 million in housing assistance has gone directly to home repairs for homeowners and renters.More than $126 million in rental assistance has been approved, allowing eligible survivors to receive funding to pay for temporary rental housing.An additional $153 million was given out for Other Needs Assistance, which helps survivors cover the costs of necessary items and services such as transportation, medical and dental expenses, clothing and funeral costs.Housing Options
To support survivors through the recovery process, FEMA and its partners have provided several housing options.
Transitional Sheltering Assistance (TSA) allows eligible survivors to stay in hotel rooms billed directly to FEMA. Currently, 1,784 applicants are taking advantage of TSA.Manufactured Housing Units (MHUs) are specialized housing units that serve as a last-resort option for survivors who cannot find other viable housing solutions. To date, 1,583 applicants are licensed in to MHUs.The Multi-family Lease and Repair Program (MLRP) provides funds to make flood-damaged rental units livable again in order to lease them as temporary housing for eligible survivors. There are currently 20 units occupied with another 25 units available.The Shelter at Home program is a FEMA-funded repair program that is implemented by the State. The program provides eligible survivors with up to $15,000 in necessary repairs to make their homes safe, habitable and secure. More than 21,600 Louisianans applied for repair assistance through Shelter at Home.Public Assistance
In response to the August flooding, FEMA increased the federal cost share for infrastructure recovery from 75 percent to 90 percent, permitting public assistance applicants to pay only 10 percent of the cost. Overall, $222.6 million in disaster assistance has been awarded by FEMA’s Public Assistance program for flood-related costs such as:
Emergency response operations;Road reconstruction;Temporary facilities;Police vehicles; andDebris removal.The Public Assistance program is helping the state of Louisiana and local jurisdictions to fund debris removal operations. The flooding generated an estimated 4 million cubic yards of debris; to date, 99 percent of that has been removed.Hazard Mitigation
The Community Education Outreach program, which offers mitigation information to residents and business owners, has assisted over 50,000 individuals at disaster recovery centers, special events and home improvement stores.Floodplain Management and Insurance has conducted over 59,000 inspections to assist local officials in making substantial damage determinations.NFIP Claims
The National Flood Insurance Program has paid out $1.7 billion on more than 29,000 claims. FEMA recommends homeowners and renters invest in flood insurance; residents do not have to live in a floodplain to be eligible for flood insurance and its benefits.
SBA Assistance
The U.S. Small Business Administration has approved more than 16,000 low-interest disaster loans totaling more than $1.1 billion. While these loans cannot duplicate benefits from insurance or other federal aid, they are available to businesses, private nonprofits, homeowners and renters.
Disaster Unemployment Assistance
Nearly 1,300 applications for Disaster Unemployment Assistance were approved for more than $1.3 million. This assistance goes directly to survivors who lost their jobs due to the flooding.
Volunteer Agency Assistance
Volunteers have provided more than 700,000 hours in support of the recovery process.
Trained volunteers have provided crisis counseling to more than 1,400 survivors at DRCs and in the communities.AmeriCorps has coordinated muck and gut operations on more than 500 flood-damaged homes.
