FEMA Disaster Recovery Centers
Mid-County
PORT NECHES — A FEMA Disaster Recovery Center is now open for Mid-County residents at the Wright Building, 1006A Port Neches Ave.
Hours are from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Public parking is available in the rear of the old bank building directly across the street from the Wright building. Access to parking can be gained from Nall Street.
Take caution while in downtown Port Neches due to construction in progress at the Wright Building and in the area from Hurricane Ike.
Orange County
• Parking lot of County Administration Building, 123 South Sixth Street, Orange.
• Bridge City High School

Salvation Army feeding sites
The Salvation Army continues to provide food and water to areas in The Golden Triangle affected by Hurricane Ike.
“The Salvation Army Disaster Response Team is ramping down its response as the need begins to decline,” said Incident Commander Cpt. Chad Williams. “We will still be working the highly affected areas but are asking that residents begin to return to normalcy.”
Port Arthur:
• Gulfway Drive and Jefferson in Port Arthur
• Larry’s Restaurant on Highway 366
Bridge City
• Bridge City Baptist Church on Round Bunch
Orange:
• West Orange City Hall on Western
High Island:
• High Island St. Matthew’s United Methodist Church

Blue Roof Program
• Bridge City High School 2690 Texas Ave., Bridge City
• 195 West Bolivar - Vidor
For the center location in your county call toll free 1-888-766-3258.


Low-interest disaster loans
Low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration are available to homeowners, renters, business owners and nonprofit organizations recovering from Hurricane Ike.
With SBA help, homeowners may borrow to repair or replace their primary residence; homeowners and renters, to replace personal property; businesses, to repair damage or recover from the disaster’s economic impact.
To begin the process, register with FEMA at www.fema.gov or call 1-800-621-FEMA, that’s 1-800-621-3362.

Help with missing persons
The Laura Recovery Center is providing their assistance to list missing persons possibly effected by Hurricane Ike. Their website, www.lrcf.net/ike has a long list of people who are still unaccounted for.
Some of the people listed may have simply evacuated and not checked in with friends or family. Some may not be able to get back home and some may have become a victim of Hurricane Ike. 
Citizens are asked to contact the Laura Recovery Center if they have information to the location of the listed missing persons.   

Orange County shelters
Two shelters continue to operate in Orange County following Hurricane Ike.
• Vidor, the shelter is located at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish Hall, 1600 N. Main St., Vidor.
• West Orange Middle School at North 13th St., Orange. These shelters will provide evacuees a safe place to sleep, shower, minor fist-aid, counseling and hot meals as they begin their recovery effort.
People coming to Red Cross shelters should bring: pillows and bedding; diapers and formula for children; prescription medicines; toiletries; and food to meet any special dietary needs. At this time, Red Cross shelters cannot accommodate pets.

Red Cross locations for Orange County
• Bridge City Wal-Mart
• Rose City — City Hall
• Red Cross — 3901 IH-10
• Richards (Old Luby's at IH10 and MLK parking lot)
• VFW – North Texas 87
Red Cross is now providing diapers & wipes, buckets, dust masks, snacks, shovels, rakes and misc. supplies.
Red Cross is not providing any financial aid support. Red Cross has medical and mental health teams going out affected neighborhoods.

Helpful numbers
• Texas State Information Center — 211
• FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) — 1-800-621-FEMA (3362)
• Texas Workforce Commission — 1-800-939-6631
• Texas Attorney General’s Office of Consumer Protection — -800-621-0508
• Texas Attorney General’s Office — 1-800-252-8011
• FEMA’s Hurricane Relief Fraud Hotline — 1-866-720-5721
• American Red Cross — 1-800-REDCROSS (733-2767)

Meals
• Staff from the kitchens of New Orleans chef John Besh will cook dinner for the residents of Orange County through Sunday evening at the VFW Post 2775, located at 5303 16th St., Orange from 5-7 p.m. The Red Cross and FEMA have coordinated to provide hot meals from lunch to dinner at VFW Post 2775, 5303 16th St., Orange. Service time is 11:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m. This kitchen will close after dinner on Sunday, Sept. 28.
• Hot food will be provided from mobile Emergency Response Vehicles (ERV) at lunch and dinner in the heavily affected areas of Rose City, Bridge City, Cove and West Orange. Where possible, the ERVs will provide bulk item distribution to affected communities.
• The Red Cross and the Baptist Disaster Relief team have partnered to provide hot meals at Old First Orange Baptist Church, 7929 IH-10 East, Orange. Meals are served 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. and from 4:30- 7 p.m.
• On Sunday, Sept. 28, this kitchen will move to North Orange Baptist Church (NOBC) at 4775 N. 16th St., Orange, where more meals can be prepared and served.

Help for business owners
Lamar State College-Port Arthur Small Business Development Center will be open to assist business owners from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, 1401 Procter St.

Disaster-Affected Workers

The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) has expanded its Tele-Center hours to serve individuals whose employment or self-employment was lost or interrupted due to Hurricane Ike. Claimants can call Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. and this Saturday September 27, 2008 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. CDT.

Call toll free: (800) 939-6631

Those who worked in Angelina, Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Cherokee, Fort Bend, Galveston, Grimes, Hardin, Harris, Houston, Jasper, Jefferson, Liberty, Madison, Matagorda, Montgomery, Nacogdoches, Newton, Orange, Polk, Sabine, San Augustine, San Jacinto, Trinity, Tyler, Walker, Waller and Washington counties are eligible to file for disaster-related unemployment benefits.
To file for disaster-related unemployment benefits, individuals also may log on to www.texasworkforce.org
Claimants also may e-mail their names and phone numbers to UIHelp@twc.state.tx.us ,and claims takers will call them back. Applications for Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA) must be filed by Wednesday, October 15, 2008.
Re-mployment services are available through Texas Workforce Centers or by accessing www.WorkInTexas.com for information.

Legal aid
A toll-free Hurricane Hotline staffed with disaster legal specialists is now in place to provide free legal help as well as referrals to other critical local resources. The Hurricane Hotline phone number is 800-733-8394 or 713-652-0077.