DURHAM, N.C. – As North Carolinians repair or rebuild their homes damaged by the flooding that followed Hurricane Matthew, FEMA and home improvement stores in Cumberland, Craven, Pasquotank and Harnett counties have teamed up to provide free information, tips and literature on making homes stronger and safer.
FEMA mitigation specialists will be on hand next week to answer questions and offer home improvement tips along with proven methods to prevent or reduce damage from future disasters as well as offer tips and techniques to build hazard resistant homes. Most of the information and the free publications provided are geared for do-it-yourself work and general contractors.
Recovery topics to be covered include flood insurance, elevating utilities and rebuilding flooded homes.
FEMA advisors will be available from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 27 through Friday, Dec. 30 at the following locations:
Cumberland County
Ace Hardware
3800 South Main St.
Hope Mills, NC 28348
Craven County
Guy C Lee Building Materials
5520 Hwy 17 South
New Bern, NC 28561
Pasquotank County
Builders Discount Center
100 Big Daddy Pkwy
Elizabeth City, NC 27909
FEMA advisors also will be available from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 27 through Friday, Dec. 30 at the following location:
Harnett County
Lowe’s Home Improvement
524 East Jackson Blvd.
Erwin, NC 28339
Free reference booklets with information on protecting your home from flood damage will be available at all locations. More information about strengthening property can be found at www.fema.gov/what-mitigation.
North Carolina survivors who have questions about their flood insurance policies and coverage should call the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362 (Option 2) for voice, 711 and Video Relay Service. If you are deaf, hard of hearing or have a speech disability and use a TTY, call 800-462-7585. Specialists can help with service claims, provide general information regarding policies and offer technical assistance to aid in recovery.
For more information on North Carolina’s recovery, visit fema.gov/disaster/4285 and readync.org. Follow FEMA on Twitter at @femaregion4 and North Carolina Emergency Management @NCEmergency.
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