RICHWOOD, W.Va. — Nicholas County was one of the first counties in West Virginia to earn the federal disaster declaration status following the June 23rd floods thanks to heavy damage sustained in Richwood, Birch River, Belva, Nallen, and in other very rural areas of the county.
Richwood was one of the first towns to open a FEMA Disaster Recovery Center, which has been moderately utilized thus far. FEMA Media Relations Specialist Renee Befalis said back log had not been an issue for FEMA applicants thus far.
“We have a very large staff in the state right now,” Befalis said. “We have about 67 inspectors throughout the state looking at these things.”
At present, FEMA can offer a maximum grant to eligible applicants of $33,000. Befalis said that people needed to register online, over the phone, or in-person at a DRC to get the process rolling.
“We don’t want folks coming in here thinking they are going to walk out the door with a check in hand because that’s not the way the process works,” she said.
But Befalis did say that the agency’s top priority is to match eligible flood victims up with rental properties–a somewhat complicated task thus far.
“First and foremost, we’d like to make sure we are working with the communities to put money back into the communities,” she said. “By putting folks in rental properties, we are able to help the economy stability of the communities that have been affected.”
One alternate solution for Nicholas County residents could be a low-interest loan with the Small Business Administration. Public Affairs Specialist Mike Peacock said rates can be as low as 1.625% for 30 years, but that it’s important that interested and eligible parties start the process as quickly as possible.
“Initially people will kind of shy away from us because we are loans,” he said. “Then once they figure out that they need additional funding and that they are not getting enough of the grant money from FEMA, then they’ll come back and sit down and talk to us. We’ll suggest that they do that sooner rather than later.”
Peacock said home owners, particularly home owners who were still paying off mortgages, should strongly pursue the SBA for a loan to help them recover.
“For those who have had significant damage to their home and they still have an existing mortgage, then they can apply with us to refinance their existing mortgage under the terms of our loans,” he said. “That’s a way for them to reduce the monthly outflow.”
A second Disaster Recovery Center opens Wednesday morning in Summersville at Nicholas County High School. Their hours will be from 7 am to 7 pm and will stay open every day.
The second DRC will open as a convenience for residents on the western end of the county. Belva, for example, is a little more than 50 miles away from the Richwood DRC. Travel time to Summersville would be approximately half of the travel time to Richwood.