Wildfire Relief: Next Step After Applying for FEMA Assistance

For residents who have been impacted by the California wildfires, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is encouraging those affected to apply for their disaster relief program.

Once residents sign up, the next steps are a home inspection.

Due to COVID-19, all inspections will be conducted via phone for the safety of the homeowners and FEMA inspectors.

Inspectors will perform verification of residence and identification of the homeowner. Residents will need to properly identify themselves through a series of questions for security purposes. Once complete, they will be given a four digit number for their application.

FEMA wants to inform applicants, to expect calls from a variety of area codes. Please check calls and voicemails to ensure their inspection appointment.

For applicants who have minimal damage and are able to still live on their properties, will not be automatically be scheduled for an inspection. They are to call the FEMA Helpline and request an inspection.

The FEMA Helpline contact is 1 (800) 621-3362 (TTY: 800-462-7585). Applicants should call between 7 a.m. and 10:30 p.m. PST. The helpline is available seven days a week. Multilingual operators are available if needed.

The deadline to register with FEMA for disaster relief is December 16, 2020.

For information on wildfire recovery, visit www.fema.gov/disaster/4569 or follow the FEMA Region 9 Twitter account at @femaregion9.