Tennessee Students May be Eligible for Assistance

College and university students in Carter, Cocke, Greene, Hamblen, Hawkins, Johnson, Unicoi and Washington counties may be eligible for FEMA temporary housing and disaster-related necessary expenses not covered by insurance or provided by another source.

Students do not need to be permanent residents of the eight counties to be eligible for FEMA assistance for Tropical Storm Helene, but the property damage or loss must have occurred in those counties.

FEMA grants can help pay for disaster-related expenses that do not have to be repaid, such as:

• Financial assistance for immediate housing needs
• Replacement or repair of necessary personal property such as room furnishings, a computer damaged in the disaster, books and other items required for school
• Replacement or repair of tools and other job-related equipment required for those who are self-employed
• Replacement or repair of primary vehicles
• Medical and dental bills resulting from the disaster
• Financial assistance to help move and store personal property.

In addition to FEMA assistance, the U.S. Small Business Administration provides loans to help cover home repairs and other disaster-related needs as well as business impacts.

The deadline to apply for federal disaster assistance is Tuesday, Jan. 7.

To apply, go to DisasterAssistance.gov, use the FEMA App or call the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362. If you use a relay service such as Video Relay Service, captioned telephone or other service, you can give FEMA your number for the service. You may also visit a Disaster Recovery Center. For locations and hours, visit fema.gov/drc.

To watch an accessible video on how to apply, visit FEMA Accessible: Registering for Individual Assistance (youtube.com).

You may also apply for a low-interest disaster loan from the U.S. Small Business Administration. SBA disaster loans are the largest source of federal recovery funds for homeowners, renters and businesses of all sizes. To learn more or apply, visit sba.gov/disaster or call 800-659-2955. You may also email [email protected].