FRANKFORT, Ky. (LEX 18) — As flood survivors are slowly able to access their homes again, many are wondering when federal aid is coming to help them recover.
Kentucky will soon be applying for federal individual assistance, according to Gov. Andy Beshear. But crews will need to do quick initial damage assessments first.
"We will be applying to the president for individual assistance," said Beshear. "That's where individuals can go in and apply to FEMA for dollars to help them recover. There's the initial set of dollars that's for cleaning supplies, immediate needs. And then, there's a larger set."
"When we apply for it, we have to have enough information and enough evidence, so that the president can then sign off on it," Beshear added. "That's what we're collecting right now and we're going to get in as quickly as we can."
Kentucky's Emergency Management Director, Eric Gibson, emphasized that the initial assessments will be quick and may not happen at every home.
"You will see teams from Kentucky Emergency Management couple up with FEMA going into those communities to make those initial hasty assessments," said Gibson. "They probably won't stay long at your place. It'll be a quick photograph - quick conversation - and we're moving on to the next. We have hundreds and hundreds of homes across many, many counties to cover."
"If we don't get to your house, it doesn't mean you won't be included. This is just the process to get the assistance turned on quickly," added Gibson.
As flood survivors wait for that assistance to kick in, the governor urges them to photograph the damage in their homes.
"What flood survivors ought to be doing right now is documenting, documenting, and documenting," said Beshear. As many pictures as you can - everything down to, if you can, the serial number of the appliances that may have been ruined or destroyed."
"Keep the receipts of the different cleaning equipment that you bought," he added. "Know that the more information you have, the more documents, the easier the FEMA process will ultimately be."
