A dozen NJ counties now qualify for FEMA help after Ida damages

A dozen counties have been added as major disaster areas by the Federal Emergency Management Agency — due to either flooding or tornadoes caused by Ida, nearly three weeks ago.

Warren County was added to the list as of Saturday, Gov. Phil Murphy announced, joining the following counties: Bergen, Essex, Gloucester, Hudson, Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Morris, Passaic, Somerset and Union counties.

FEMA had registered over 37,000 citizens — 27,000 homeowners and about 10,000 renters — as of Wednesday, according to State Police Superintendent Col. Patrick Callahan during a remote state briefing.

The agency also had already distributed almost $9 million in individual assistance with the average being around $4,200 per household, he continued.

FEMA damage assessments in two other counties - Burlington and Monmouth — stemming from Ida were still ongoing as of last week.

“It's just some time in order to do the comprehensive assessments to ensure that they hit those thresholds,” Callahan said when asked Wednesday about the remaining areas under consideration for major disaster area declaration.

Residents can register for FEMA help at disasterassistance.gov.

Disaster Recovery Centers also have been opened at the following locations:

Hudson County
Secaucus Public Library, Business Resource Center
1379 Paterson Plank Road, Secaucus
Hours: Monday - Friday 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Essex County
Kmart – Co-located with a Vaccination Center, 235 Prospect Avenue #9413, West Orange
Hours: Monday - Friday 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Closed Sundays

Morris County
Morris Plains Community Center, 51 Jim Fear Dr., Morris Plains
Hours: Monday - Thursday 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Closed Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays

Somerset County
North End Volunteer Fire Company #3, 169 North 8th Ave., Manville
Hours: Monday - Friday 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Union County
Elizabeth O’Donnell Dempsey Senior Community Center, 618 Salem Ave., Elizabeth
Hours: Monday - Friday 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Hunterdon County
Union Fire Company #1, 230 N. Main St., Lambertville
Hours: Monday - Friday 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Bergen County
Ciarco Learning Center, 355 Main St., Hackensack
Hours: Monday through Saturday 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Closed Sundays

Mercer County
Hollowbrook Community Center, 320 Hollowbrook Drive, Trenton
Hours: Monday - Friday 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Middlesex County
Middlesex Fire Academy, 1001 Fire Academy Drive, Cafeteria B, Sayreville
Hours: Monday - Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Passaic County
Civic Center. 19 Warren Street, Little Falls
Hours: Monday - Friday 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Gloucester County
Mullica Hill Library, 389 Wolfert Station Road, Mullica Hill
Hours: Monday - Friday 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Residents who previously registered for assistance do not need to visit a center, but can ask questions or seek further information in-person, in addition to online or by phone.

Ida survivors in designated counties also have the option to call 800-621-3362.

The line operates from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week.

Those applying for FEMA assistance are urged to have the following information on-hand:
- A current phone number where you can be contacted
- Address at the time of the disaster and the address where you are now staying
- Social Security number, if available
- A general list of damage and losses
- If insured, the policy number or the agent and/or the company name

Disaster assistance may include financial help for temporary lodging and home repairs along with other programs to assist families recover from the effects of the event, according to Morris County officials who also confirmed the county's major disaster declaration following Ida.

The state has said information would be transferred to FEMA that was submitted to the state Office of Emergency Management through a separate online portal, before some residents' counties had been declared disaster areas.

With previous reporting by Dino Flammia and Michael Symons