Due to slow traffic, the Federal Emergency Management Agency is closing down its Disaster Recovery Centers in Bellevue and at the State Fair Grounds. On Monday, the offices will become loan centers run by the Small Business Administration.
At its peak, FEMA ran 49 Disaster Recovery Centers after May’s flooding. More than 20,000 visitors registered for financial help on location.
Tennessee Emergency Management Agency director James Bassham says the transition to loan outreach centers is a “positive step in the recovery.” He says the community is now looking at more long-term rebuilding.
A FEMA representative will still be on site at the SBA loan offices, and the agency is encouraging flood victims who applied for help who aren’t satisfied with the outcome to appeal. Requests could have been denied for a range of factors, such as a lack of documentation to prove disaster damage or missing an appointment with a FEMA inspector.
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