American Red Cross to give cash aid

The American Red Cross will be handing out cash aid. The process will be done in cooperation with the ARC-NMI Chapter.

The assistance will be given to families on Saipan and Tinian whose homes were either totally destroyed (two or more structural elements) or damaged (one structural element).

One structural element is a roof or a wall. To be considered structural damage, it must be collapsed rafters or wall studs and not just flooding and window or tin roof damage.

The Red Cross will have several service centers throughout Saipan to avoid over-crowding while Tinian will have one at the Tinian Community Gym, which will be open daily from 9am to 5:30pm.

The Tanapag Social Hall is one of Saipan’s service centers and opened yesterday. The Tanapag service center will be at the Tanapag Social Hall up to tomorrow and is open from 9am to 6pm.

The Red Cross will also put up service centers in Kagman (9am to 6pm, Nov. 15 and 16); Chalan Kanoa, San Antonio and Koblerville (9am to 6pm, from Nov. 17 to 19); and San Vicente and Dandan (9am to 6pm, from Nov. 17 to 19).

The locations in Kagman, Chalan Kanoa, San Antonio, Koblerville, San Vicente, and Dandan will be announced before Thursday.

“To minimize wait time, visit the service center closest to your home. Only one head of household needs to come to the service center,” said the Red Cross.

The head of household must bring an ID as proof of residency (official photo, lot number, phone or Commonwealth Utilities Corp. billing, or rental or lease agreement). Saipan residents must also bring photos of household damage.

For more information, call 2343459.
 
Recovery Center closed
The Disaster Recovery Center at the Joeten Kiyu Public Library will be closed today for the CNMI general election. They will resume their operations tomorrow and on Thursday from 8am to 5pm and will move to the Pedro P. Tenorio Multi-Purpose Center in Susupe on Friday.

The DRC assists residents with face-to-face meetings with representatives of the local government, FEMA, and the U.S. Small Business Administration in answering questions related to their recovery and other disaster-related assistance.

They are first encouraging applicants who are insured to make a claim with their insurance before registering to avail FEMA’s disaster assistance.

For more information, call (800) 6213362 or apply online at disasterassistance.gov. The number for speech or hearing-impaired individuals is 1-800-462-7585.