A second Disaster Recovery Center (DRC) opened Thursday on St. John to provide information and help for survivors of hurricanes Irma and Maria. It is located at Town & Country Building, 8-1 Estate Emmaus, Coral Bay.
The island’s first recovery center opened Thursday at the U.S. Virgin Islands Legislature, St. John Annex, 1D Cruz Bay.
Like most recovery centers, the two St. John DRCs are open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., daily, until further notice.
Recovery centers offer one-on-one support to homeowners, renters and small-business owners as a result of the major disaster declarations stemming from the hurricanes.
Recovery specialists from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) are available to help survivors register for assistance, provide information on the federal aid that is available and answer questions.
With the opening of St. John’s second recovery center, the Virgin Islands now has nine DRCs open across the territory. The centers have assisted more than 6,700 visitors to date.
Survivors with connectivity may register with FEMA for assistance at www.DisasterAssistance.gov or by calling 800-621-3362. Individuals who have a speech disability or hearing loss and use TTY should call 800-462-7585 directly. Those who use 711 or Video Relay Service (VRS) may call 800-621-3362.
These toll-free telephone numbers operate from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. (local time) seven days a week. Operators are standing by to assist survivors in multiple languages.
