President Declares Major Disaster For Georgia 

Release Date: September 24, 2009
Release Number: HQ-09-110 

WASHINGTON - The head of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) today announced that federal disaster aid has been made available for the State of Georgia and ordered federal aid to supplement state and local recovery efforts in the area struck by severe storms and flooding beginning on September 18, 2009, and continuing.

FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate said the President's action makes federal funding available to affected individuals in Carroll, Cherokee, Cobb, Douglas, and Paulding counties.

Assistance can include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses, and other programs to help individuals and business owners recover from the effects of the disaster.

Federal funding is also available on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures for all counties within the state.

Fugate named Gracia B. Szczech as the Federal Coordinating Officer for federal recovery operations in the affected area. Szczech said that damage surveys are continuing in other areas, and more counties and additional forms of assistance may be designated after the assessments are fully completed.

FEMA said that residents and business owners who sustained losses in the designated counties can begin applying for assistance tomorrow by registering online at www.DisasterAssistance.gov or by calling 1-800-621-FEMA(3362) or 1-800-462-7585 (TTY) for the hearing and speech impaired. The toll-free telephone numbers will operate from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. (local time).

FEMA's mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.