Federal aid deadline extended for Ruidoso fire, flooding

EL PASO, Texas ( KTSM ) — If your home or other personal property was damaged because of the South Fork and Salt fires and subsequent flooding, you now have more time to apply for federal disaster assistance from FEMA.

The deadline to apply for federal disaster assistance has been extended 60 days until Oct. 19 at the request of Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.

Individuals and families affected by the fires and floods may be eligible for rental assistance, temporary housing, home repairs, personal property losses and other disaster-related needs not covered by insurance, according to a news release sent out by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

How to Apply for FEMA Disaster Assistance

The first step for individuals and households to receive help is to apply to FEMA for federal disaster assistance. There are no costs involved with applying for, or receiveing FEMA assistance. There are four ways to apply:

• Go online to disasterassistance.gov/
• Download the FEMA App for mobile devices at fema.gov/about/news-multimedia/mobile-products
• Call the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362 between 5 a.m. and 9 p.m. MT, seven days a week. Help is available in most languages. If you use a relay service, such as video relay (VRS), captioned telephone or other service, give FEMA your number for that service.
• Visit a Disaster Recovery Center operated by the state of New Mexico and FEMA. For location and hours, visit fema.gov/drc

For an American Sign Language (ASL) video on how to apply for assistance, visit youtube.com/watch= WZGpWI2RCNw .

The U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) deadline to apply for a long-term, low interest disaster loan has also been extended to Oct. 19. SBA representatives are available at disaster recovery centers. Homeowners and businesses can also visit www.SBA.gov/disaster , call SBA’s customer service center at 800-659-2955. Deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals may call 7-1-1 or email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov for information or to apply.

For more information about FEMA’s Individual Assistance program, visit www.fema.gov/assistance/individual .

For the latest information on New Mexico’s recovery visit fema.gov/disaster/4795 .

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