Alaska officials have begun to release details Tuesday on how to apply for assistance after Gov. Sean Parnell declared state disasters in this season’s Kenai Peninsula flooding and Interior storms. According to a Tuesday statement from the state Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, Kenai Peninsula Borough residents may request individual family grants and temporary housing assistance for damage dealt by flooding Oct. 27 and 28. Interior assistance covers damage from the storms, which buffeted the Fairbanks area from Nov. 5 through Nov. 14, for residents of the cities of Fairbanks and North Pole, as well as the Fairbanks North Star Borough. Residents of the Bering Strait, Lower Yukon and Lower Kuskokwim regional education attendance areas are also eligible to apply. “In order to serve the large geographic area and numerous Alaskans affected by these events (DHSEM) will establish several ways affected individuals and families can apply for (individual assistance),” officials wrote. The division plans to establish a series of disaster assistance centers at which people can apply for state aid. As of Tuesday, though, only one has been identified: the Kenai Peninsula Borough Emergency Management Office at 253 Wilson Lane in Soldotna, set to open Sunday and operate through Dec. 11 from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. “(DHSEM) will establish (disaster assistance centers) in the Fairbanks area and in some West Coast communities as needed,” officials wrote. DHSEM officials say details on how to apply for disaster assistance online or by phone are pending, with both set for release by Saturday. The phone hotline’s number will be posted on the division’s website by Friday; it will operate Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., after which it will operate from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays. Before contacting state officials, residents affected by the disasters are asked to gather descriptions and details of the damages they suffered, proof of ownership and insurance, and their personal identification.
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