FEMA Approves Individual Aid for Eight Panhandle Counties

President Donald Trump has approved individual FEMA assistance for eight Florida Panhandle counties damaged by Hurricane Isaias, the Florida Phoenix reported Thursday: Bay, Escambia, Gulf, Holmes, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, Walton and Washington. WEAR reported that the Florida Division of Emergency Management announced it.

Isaias made landfall at Destin as a Category 2 hurricane on Oct. 9, the Phoenix reported. WEAR reported that residents can apply at DisasterAssistance.gov and that FEMA will verify eligibility and need. FEMA cannot provide benefits for losses covered by insurance, Escambia County said, so residents should file insurance claims first, the Phoenix reported. Travis Tompkins, Escambia’s emergency manager, told WEAR that applicants should not expect an immediate decision and that the help is not meant to make everybody completely whole. He urged everyone with damage to apply, and insured residents may still qualify for items insurance does not cover.

As of a Tuesday update, 62,295 insurance claims totaling more than $652.2 million had been filed, and 33,368 remained open with no payment, the Phoenix reported, citing state data. The president earlier approved public assistance for 15 counties, and the state requested $237 million, the Phoenix reported; the release did not say how much was approved.