The floodwaters of June are long gone and several government offices that were set up to offer assistance are now shutting down. This week, U.S. Small Business Administration disaster loan outreach centers in Allison and Webster City closed, but S.B.A. spokesman Bill Koonts says that doesn’t mean aid is no longer available.
Koonts says, "Even though those facilities may close, or any of the other recovery centers throughout the state may close, everyone still has until the application deadline to apply for help." That deadline is September 29th to visit one of the other centers, or to call the Federal Emergency Management Agency hotline toll-free at 800-621-FEMA.
Koonts says the past several weeks have been very busy for his agency. "So far, since all the flooding began way back in June, just in Iowa, the S.B.A. has approved 2,848 loans for a total of 176-million in assistance," Koonts says. And while the S.B.A. has "small business" in its name, he stresses that the majority of those loans weren’t to businesses, but rather to homeowners and renters.
He says they approved 387 business loans in Iowa for a total of 45-million dollars and 2,461 home loans to individuals for a total of $130.6 million. The S.B.A. still has disaster loan outreach centers open in: Cedar Rapids, Des Moines, Davenport, Iowa City, Mason City, Ottumwa, Waterloo, Waverly and West Burlington. For more information, visit the SBA website .