Washington County flood victims eligible for low-interest federal disaster loans
Relief is now available to people affected by flooding last month in Washington County. Federal and state dollars are available to help people recover.
The loans are through the U.S. Small Business Administration. They have an office in the South Strabane Municipal Building to help people do the paperwork and apply.
The low-interest loans are for 30 years. Homeowners can borrow up to $500,000 to replace real estate and $100,000 to repair personal property. It goes up to $2 million for businesses.
"There's a couple of businesses that I don't want to say are suffering, but they took a big hit. You know, they're trying to recoup from what their insurance wasn't covering," Washington County emergency management deputy director Daniel Harvey said.
Harvey said this is for anyone who got damage between Sept. 12-20, adding that the federal help goes beyond just Washington County.
"All the residents of Washington County, all the counties that are bordering Washington County. The counties in, like, the state of West Virginia," Harvey said over Zoom.
He added that technology improvements are helping to speed up the process of assessing damage and have made it easier to calculate after the storms in September.
"They don't have to wait a few days, or maybe even a week, until we collect all the pencil and paper assessments. Everything is online, and at their disposal, they can see everything," Harvey said.
Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency grants are available to the municipalities that issued disaster declarations. Those don't have to be paid back.
The office is open Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., and closed on Election Day.
The last day the office is open is Nov. 10. The deadline to file for physical property is Dec. 22 and economic recovery is July 23, 2027.
To schedule an appointment, click here.
To apply online, click here.
