Local News

FEMA, state of MN open disaster recovery center in Virginia

KAXE

Published August 16, 2024 at 11:42 AM CDT

FEMA, the state of Minnesota and the U.S. Small Business Administration have opened a disaster recovery center in Virginia to assist survivors of the flooding and severe storms that occurred in northeastern Minnesota in June and July 2024.

The center is intended to assist victims of flooding and severe storms June 16-July 4, 2024. The U.S. Small Business Administration also opened a business recovery center in Cook.

VIRGINIA — A disaster recovery center opened Friday, Aug. 16, in Virginia to help residents with recovery after the severe storms and flooding earlier this summer.

Specialists from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the state of Minnesota and the U.S. Small Business Administration will be at the center to help survivors.

The center is located at the St. Louis County Public Works Training Room in Virginia, open from 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Mondays through Sundays. All appointments are on a first-come, first-serve basis.

People can apply for federal disaster assistance, upload documents, get their questions answered in person and access other types of help that may be available. They can also learn how to make their properties more resilient to future natural disasters.

Federal financial assistance is available for eligible homeowners and renters in the form of grants to cover costs of temporary housing and home repairs, low-interest loans to cover uninsured property losses, and other programs to help individuals recover from the effects of the disaster.

Representatives from FEMA, the Small Business Administration and the state of Minnesota ar set up inside the Training Room at the St. Louis County Public Works facility in Virginia. The Disaster Recovery Center opened Friday, Aug. 16, 2024, to provide in-person assistance for flood survivors applying for federal help.

"Having a physical location for people to get help from trained professionals is a great resource for our residents," stated St. Louis County Commissioner Paul McDonald, whose district was hardest hit by the June 18 storm, in a news release.

"Having all three agencies in one place is especially helpful because it functions like a triage. For instance, a person may not be eligible for a particular type of assistance but can immediately be referred to other programs for which they do qualify."

St. Louis County reported it is providing use of the Public Works Training Room for the Disaster Recovery Center at no charge.

Business Recovery Center

The SBA also opened a Business Recovery Center in St. Louis County earlier this week at the Cook Fire/Ambulance Hall, 111 Second St. SE. The Business Recovery Center is open 8 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m.-3 p.m.
Saturdays.

SBA staff at the Business Recovery Center will help business owners complete their disaster loan application, accept documents, and provide updates on an application’s status. Walk-in appointments are available on a first-come, first-served basis, or people can schedule an in-person appointment through the SBA website at appointment.sba.gov.

Both of the staffed sites will remain open until further notice. Federal financial assistance is available to private property owners because the June flood event is now a Presidentially Declared Disaster.