BATON ROUGE, La. – If you or someone you know wants to apply for federal disaster assistance, the Federal Emergency Management Agency probably can provide a translator or interpreter who speaks your language.
When you call the FEMA helpline, 800-621-3362, you will be asked in English to press “1” for English, or in Spanish, to press “2” for Spanish. If you do not press “1” or “2”, and do not hang up, an English-speaking registration assistant will answer and a language translator will be brought on line to assist the caller in registering for FEMA assistance. FEMA is able to provide translators for most languages.
To register, go online to DisasterAssistance.gov or call the FEMA helpline. Help is available in most languages and phone lines are open 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week until further notice. An American Sign Language interpreter can be made available at the Disaster Recovery Center when you visit.
Disaster survivors who are deaf, hard-of-hearing or have a speech disability and use a TTY may call 800-462-7585 to register. Those who use 711 or Video Relay Service may call 800-621-3362. All disaster recovery centers are accessible and equipped with tools to accommodate disaster survivors who need disability-related communication aids. Each disaster recovery center provides communication accessibility tools for people with communication disabilities.
For information call the FEMA helpline at 800-621-3362 or go online to www.DisasterAssistance.gov or www.fema.gov/disaster/4277.
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