Dear John,

I am writing with an update on federal disaster assistance for damages incurred during the historic rainfall and severe floods experienced on August 18, 2024.

The deadline to apply for assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is Tuesday, November 19, 2024. This assistance is made possible by the major disaster declaration approved in September by President Joe Biden for homeowners, renters, and businessowners in Fairfield, Litchfield and New Haven Counties.

• In-person at the Disaster Recovery Center located at Southbury Town Hall (501 Main Street, Southbury). It is open Mondays to Fridays from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., Saturdays from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., and is closed on Sundays.
• Online at DisasterAssistance.gov or through the FEMA mobile app.
• Via telephone through the FEMA Helpline at 1-800-621-3362. (If you use video relay service, captioned telephone service, or others, give FEMA your number for that service. Helpline operators are available from 7:00 a.m. to midnight daily. Press 2 for Spanish. Press 3 for an interpreter who speaks your language.)

• In-person at the Business Recovery Center located at Oxford Town Hall (486 Oxford Road, Oxford). It is open Mondays to Fridays from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., Saturdays from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., and is closed on Sundays.
• Online at SBA.gov/disaster.
• Via telephone through the SBA Customer Service Center at 1-800-659-2955. Individuals who are deaf or hard-of-hearing may call 1-800-877-8339.

Disaster assistance is not a substitute for insurance and cannot compensate for all losses caused by a disaster. The assistance is intended to meet basic needs and supplement disaster recovery efforts.

Although the deadline for most FEMA and SBA assistance programs is quickly approaching, the SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loan program will remain open for businesses until June 20, 2025. This program provides working capital loans to help small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture, and most private, nonprofit organizations of all sizes meet their ordinary and necessary financial obligations that cannot be met as a direct result of the disaster. These loans are intended to assist through the disaster recovery period.

For more information from FEMA on Connecticut’s recovery from this storm, visit fema.gov/disaster/4820.

Jahana Hayes
Member of Congress