On Oct. 8, Governor Cooper received a letter from FEMA denying the individual assistance portion of the major disaster declaration request.

FEMA stated, “it has been determined that the impact to the individuals and households from this event is not of such severity and magnitude to warrant the designation of individual assistance.”

Hyde County officials are deeply disappointed with this decision and are currently working with our state and federal partners to discuss all available options moving forward.

Though FEMA individual assistance is not available, assistance is still available for anyone at the Joint Recovery Center located in the Ocracoke Variety Store parking lot, 950 Irvin Garrish Highway. We highly recommend that all residents and business owners visit the recovery center to fill out an intake form, even if you are not requesting assistance. This will ensure that we have as much information as possible about the short term and long-term needs of the community as we continue the recovery efforts. The form will also help us estimate the total damages suffered on the island. The Joint Recovery Center has representatives from multiple agencies to help with the following:

• Housing assistance
• Housing repair
• Medical needs
• Unemployment assistance or help finding employees for businesses
• Business recovery
• Insurance claims
• Mold remediation
• Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
• Utility payment assistance
• Small Business Administration (Coming Soon)
• Any other unmet needs

The Joint Recovery Center’s hours of operation will be changing on Oct. 11. Friday’s hours will be from 9:00 a.m. to 2 p.m. and the center will be closed over the weekend. Moving forward, the hours of operation will be Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Joint Recovery Center can be reached by phone at 984-789-2262 or 984-233-3034.

We have also formed a long term recovery group that is working on plans to address recovery issues as we move forward. They will be working with non-profit organizations that have received or donated funds to the Ocracoke recovery efforts and matching them with residents that have unmet needs. This is another reason we are urging everyone to go the recovery center to fill out an intake form.