How much of FEMA's direct relief money has gone to Virginians

FEMA has approved just over $210 million for the Southeast as of Monday in response to Hurricane Helene.

• That includes nearly $500,000 for over 89 households in Southwest Virginia, per the agency.

Why it matters: The numbers illustrate Americans' urgent financial needs in the immediate aftermath of natural disasters, like Helene, one of the deadliest storms to hit the U.S. this century .

The big picture: More help is now needed in the wake of Hurricane Helene , which damaged 519 homes in Southwest Virginia, including 44 homes that were fully destroyed and 161 that sustained major damage, Cardinal News reported last week .

• And help will likely be needed after Hurricane Milton , which is now bearing down on Florida's western coast.

Yes, but: FEMA is running out of money to cover the rest of this hurricane season, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas warned last week.

Zoom out: As shown in the map above, Florida, Louisiana and Texas residents received the lion's share of FEMA's Individuals and Households Program between 2015 and April 2024, per newly gathered data.

• The database covers 170 incidents for which IHP was activated, including hurricanes, floods, fires and more.
• IHP is just a portion of FEMA's post-disaster relief spending.

By the numbers: FEMA spent about $12.7 billion on IHP over the covered period, compared to about $52.3 billion on "Public Assistance," which helps fund community rebuilding efforts.

• Just over $10 million of the IHP money for the nine-year period was to Virginians in the wake of 2016's Hurricane Matthew . Virginians got an additional $16.4 million in public assistance funds after Matthew.

Context: IHP is meant to be an immediate financial lifeline for people whose lives have been upended by natural disasters, not an insurance replacement.

What they're saying: " The disaster recovery system is cracking under the strain of more frequent and devastating disasters and the reality of a divided Congress that is struggling to fund the federal government at all," Labowitz recently wrote .

• One big problem, she noted, is that natural disaster victims aren't getting enough help "to rebuild differently or elsewhere," continuing an expensive and destructive cycle.

What's next: Experts predict big jumps in FEMA relief spending once the full Helene tally is complete, especially in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Tennessee.