Belmar Disaster Recovery Center to Close Saturday

The FEMA Disaster Recovery Center in Belmar Borough Hall will close 4 p.m. Saturday Feb. 23 after officials saw fewer appointments being made at the office, the agency announced today.

Since it's opening after Hurricane Sandy, the office saw more than 3,400 appointments at 601 Main Street in Belmar. After scheduling slows, the offices announce they are closing and divert those seeking disaster assistance to nearby DRCs.

"Over the past weeks, the number of individuals seeking help at the Belmar center has dropped, indicating the information needs of survivors in the area have mostly been met," said FEMA in an announcement today.

However, the next nearest DRCs for the Belmar area still open after Saturday will be Toms River's and Union Beach's. Both those DRCs, though, will close March 2, FEMA announced.

In place of the Belmar DRC will be a Small Business Association Office for Disaster Loan Outreach.

The SBA Disaster Loan Outreach Center will operate in the Belmar Municipal Building Monday through Friday from 9 a.m.-7 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. starting Monday, Feb. 25.

The DRC for Belmar opened Nov. 10 and had seen more than 3,400 visits. Those still needing a DRC visit should head to Toms River, at Bell Crest Plaza Storefront 4C, at 953 Fischer Blvd.; or Union Beach at the Municipal Building, 650 Poole Ave.

After March 2, the remaining DRCs will be Mays Landing, Manahawkin and Jersey City, which will remain open through March 9.

Additional contact info for disaster assistance:

Survivors can check on the status of their disaster assistance applications at DisasterAssistance.gov, by using a smartphone or tablet at m.FEMA.gov, or by calling 800-621-FEMA (3362), TTY 800-462-7585 or 711/VRS. They also can call those numbers to inquire about rental recertification.

They can ask questions about their Small Business Administration disaster home or business loan applications by calling 800-659-2955 or TTY 800-877-8339 or emailing disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.

Additional resources are available online at FEMA.gov/SandyNJ and SBA.gov/Sandy.

Survivors who have questions about flood insurance claims and the appeals process can call toll-free 888-379-9531.