San Juan, Puerto Rico — An additional Disaster Recovery Center (DRC) is now open in Ponce. The joint DRC, a partnership between the municipality, the Government of Puerto Rico and FEMA, will help Hurricane Fiona survivors apply for FEMA assistance, upload documents needed for their application and answer questions in person.
“With the opening of more FEMA DRC’s in Puerto Rico, our people, specifically those directly affected by Hurricane Fiona, will continue to receive direct federal guidance. I continue to urge our citizens to make their claims as more DRC’s are opened throughout the Island,” said the governor of Puerto Rico, Pedro R. Pierluisi.
Representatives from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) are on hand at the DRC to provide program information and explain how to apply for SBA’s low-interest disaster loans for homeowners, businesses, private nonprofits and renters, and provide information about repairs and rebuilding to make homes more disaster resistant.
Services are provided in English and Spanish. If you need a reasonable accommodation or a sign language interpreter to communicate with FEMA, please send an email to FEMA-PRaccesible@fema.dhs.gov. You can also call 1-833-285-7448, press 2 for Spanish.
The center in Ponce is located at:
Polideportivo Francisco “Frankie” Colón Alers
Ave. Los Caobos Final
Ponce, PR 00716
Open 7 days a week 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.
A FEMA Hazard Mitigation Community Education Outreach Specialist will be on site to assist survivors in
preparing for future incidents.
DRCs are also open in Caguas, Mayagüez, Cayey and Vega Baja seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The locations are:
Centro de Bellas Artes de Caguas Esquina Calle Ruiz Belvis |
Estadio Pedro Montañez Calle Matías Soto, Barriada San Cristóbal |
Cancha de Baloncesto Bo. Colombia Barrio Colombia |
Centro Comunal Los Naranjos Barrio Cabo Caribe |
To find a DRC nearest you, click on the FEMA DRC link: Fema.gov/drc.
You may also register for assistance with FEMA through your smart phone, home computer or by phone. The fastest ways to apply for assistance are:
- Online at DisasterAssistance.gov
- Download FEMA’s mobile app. Select Disaster Resources and click on Apply for Assistance Online.
- By phone at 1-800-621-3362. Press 1 for English, 2 for Spanish and 3 for all other languages. People who use a relay service such as video relay service (VRS), captioned telephone service or others, provide FEMA the number for that service. Phone lines operate from 7 a.m. to 2 a.m. seven days a week.