ORLANDO, Fla. – Central Floridians are still recovering two months after Hurricane Ian. Now, people impacted by the storm have more time to apply for federal disaster assistance.
“We want to give everybody the opportunity to apply,” said Mary Bradfield with the U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Disaster Assistance.
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Bradfield said the original deadline to apply for an SBA loan was going to be Monday, Nov. 28, but the agency extended the deadline to Jan. 12, 2023.
“So this gives people a little more time to get those documents together and apply,” she said.
Last week, FEMA announced it was also extending its deadline to Jan. 12, 2023 to apply for federal disaster assistance.
So far, Bradfield said SBA has issued more than a billion dollars worth of loans to people impacted by Ian.
“We believe there are still more people who are still gathering their documents,” Bradfield said.
Bradfield said businesses, homeowners, renters and nonprofits, including houses of worship, can apply for the low interest rate loans. She said people can use those funds for expenses not covered by insurance or FEMA.
A disaster declaration applies to people living in the following Central Florida counties: Brevard, Flagler, Lake, Orange, Osceola, Polk, Seminole, and Volusia.
People living in Charlotte, Collier, DeSoto, Glades, Hardee, Hendry, Highlands, Hillsborough, Lee, Manatee, Monroe, Okeechobee, Palm Beach, Pasco, Pinellas, Putnam, Sarasota and St. Johns counties also have until Jan. 12, 2023, to apply.
She added businesses in surrounding counties who were economically impacted by Ian can also apply. The SBA said those counties are the following: Alachua, Bradford, Broward, Clay, Duval, Hernando, Indian River, Marion, Martin, Miami-Dade, Saint Lucie and Sumter.
Even if you don’t think you need the money now, Bradfield said you can still apply and wait up to six months to take the loan.
“There might be a hidden expense that you don’t expect or something insurance in the end does not cover, but as long as you get that application in you have that as one (arrow) in the quiver of your disaster assistance,” she said.
People interested in federal disaster assistance can apply online ,or by visiting one of the disaster recovery centers in Central Florida.
You must first register with FEMA.
The SBA, in conjunction with the City of New Smyrna Beach, FEMA, and Disability Solutions, is also hosting a one-day-only disaster assistance center at the Alonzo “Babe” James Community Center in New Smyrna Beach on Monday, Nov. 28 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
”It’s a first come, first serve situation and you want your application in there as quickly as possible. There are a lot of people competing for those loans,” Bradfield said.
You can apply for an SBA loan using an electronic loan application on the SBA website. You can also request a paper application by calling SBA customer service at 1-800-659-2955.
To be eligible for any FEMA Individual Assistance program, you must apply to FEMA. There are three ways to apply:
- Download the FEMA App for mobile devices
- Call toll-free 800-621-3362 (FEMA)
For an accessible video on how to apply for assistance go to, FEMA’s YouTube page.
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