FEMA suspends in-field operations in Puerto Rico until Mar. 30
Effective immediately, the Federal Emergency Management Agency will suspend, until Mar. 30, in-field operations in support of the Puerto Rico earthquakes.
FEMA personnel will continue to work on the island to support survivors.
FEMA will support the governor of Puerto Rico, who issued an executive order shutting down all non-essential government and commercial operations on the island.
Beginning today, FEMA closed all Disaster Recovery Centers and suspended all mitigation specialist visits to businesses like Home Depot and National Lumber.
Additionally, Disaster Survivor Assistance teams will not canvas municipalities approved for assistance, and housing site assessors are stopping all visits to earthquake-damaged homes.
“FEMA is still on the island and committed to helping Puerto Rico residents whose homes and property were damaged by the Dec. 28 to Feb. 4 earthquakes, despite the pause in field operations,” it said in a statement.
Earthquake survivors can call the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362 (FEMA) or (TTY) 800-462-7585. Lines are open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. Survivors may also apply for assistance or get information on the status of their FEMA applications at www.DisasterAssistance.gov.
The deadline to apply for FEMA assistance is April 15.
