CLAY COUNTY-The State of Tennessee announced over the weekend it had received an amendment to the federal major disaster declaration for Winter Storm Fern expanding available aid to include FEMA Individual Assistance for residents here and in 28 other impacted Tennessee counties.

Under the amendment, survivors in Clay County and the following other counties are now able to apply for Individual Assistance: Benton, Carroll, Cheatham, Chester, Davidson, Decatur, Dickson, Dyer, Fayette, Hardeman, Hardin, Henderson, Hickman, Lewis, Macon, Madison, Maury, McNairy, Montgomery, Perry, Robertson, Rutherford, Shelby, Sumner, Trousdale, Wayne, Williamson, and Wilson.

This assistance comes after all 95 counties were either designated for FEMA Public Assistance or emergency protective measures under Public Assistance.

“This amendment is an important step in helping Tennesseans recover from this disaster and ensuring more survivors can access the support they need,” said TEMA Director Patrick C. Sheehan.  “We are grateful to the White House, FEMA, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for considering the data provided by TEMA and our state agency partners and for working with Tennessee to maximize the assistance available to individuals and families who experienced losses.”

Individual Assistance can help eligible survivors with disaster-related expenses such as temporary housing, home repairs, replacement of essential personal property, and other serious disaster related needs.

Survivors in the designated counties who sustained damage from Winter Storm Fern are encouraged to apply for assistance through FEMA.

Tennesseans can apply for FEMA IA by visiting DisasterAssistance.gov, calling 800-621-3362, or using the FEMA App.

To watch an accessible video on how to apply for disaster assistance, search for FEMA Accessible: Registering for Individual Assistance at Youtube.com.

If you use a video relay service (VRS), captioned telephone service, or other communication services, give FEMA your number for that service.

More information on FEMA’s IA program can also be found at www.fema.gov/assistance/individual.

Applying for federal disaster assistance from FEMA will not affect other federal benefits that survivors may receive, like Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, or other federal welfare and entitlement programs.

Before an Applicant starts a FEMA application, they should be prepared to provide contact information, social security number, damage information, financial information, and insurance information.

After applying for assistance, survivors may receive phone calls from FEMA from an unknown or unfamiliar number.  It is important to answer these calls, as FEMA may need to speak with applicants to continue processing their case.

In some situations, an application may be delayed or initially denied if FEMA is unable to reach the applicant. 

Survivors should also remember that FEMA representatives will never ask for payment.  FEMA representatives will identify a case using the registration number assigned to the survivor’s application.

More information and updates about available assistance can also be found at www.tn.gov/tema.