Valley Fire September 2020

Follow links below for help in the recovery process. Residents can also call 2-1-1 for health and community resources.

Valley Fire Recovery Assistance Now Available, Register Today

For individuals who lost their home or sustained other losses due to the Valley Fire, you may be able to apply for federal assistance. FEMA gives eligible survivors financial awards to help them pay for such needs as rent, home repair or replacement; medical, dental or funeral costs, transportation and other serious disaster-related expenses.

Before you apply, contact your insurance company and file a claim for the disaster-caused damage. Take photographs or video of the damage and keep all receipts related to home repair.

You can register for this federal assistance in three ways:

  1. Online at https://www.disasterassistance.gov/,
  2. Download and use the FEMA app on your smartphone or tablet, or
  3. Call the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362 (TTY 800-462-7585) between 7 a.m. and 10:30 p.m. PDT. The helpline has specialists who speak many different languages.

The deadline to register is December 15

To apply for assistance, be prepared with the following information:

  • Social Security Number
  • Insurance policy information
  • Address of the damaged primary dwelling
  • A description of disaster-caused damage and losses
  • Current mailing address
  • Current telephone number
  • Total household annual income
  • Routing and account number of your checking or savings account (for direct transfer to your bank account)

For additional resources and background, please visit https://wildfirerecovery.caloes.ca.gov/ and click on “Current Incidents.”

 

FEMA Disaster Survivor Assistance available at the Rancho San Diego Library

FEMA will have staff present at the Rancho San Diego Library on the following dates to help Valley Fire survivors register for disaster assistance programs:  

  • October 29 - 30, 2020 from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.
  • October 31, 2020 from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.

Address: 11555 Via Rancho San Diego, El Cajon, CA 92019.

 

U.S. Small Business Administration

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has established a Virtual Disaster Loan Outreach Center to help homeowners and renters. Customer service representatives are available to assist business owners and individuals to answer questions about SBA’s disaster loan program, explain the application process and help each person complete their electronic loan application.

Virtual Business Recovery Center and Virtual Disaster Loan Outreach Center

Monday – Sunday (7 days/week)

5 a.m. – 5 p.m. PDT

FOCWAssistance@sba.gov

(800) 659-2955

For more information, applicants may contact SBA’s Disaster Assistance Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955. TTY users may also call 800-877-8339. 

Applicants may also email: disastercustomerservice@sba.gov or visit SBA at SBA.gov/disaster

 

Recovery Overviews and General Resources

Damage Assessment

Rebuilding and Permit Processing in the Unincorporated County

Debris Assistance

Public Health and Hazardous Waste

California State Resources Franchise Tax Board

Property Taxes

California State Resources Veteran Services

Consumer Information

Recovery Assistance Email

Unincorporated County residents affected by the wildfires may email ValleyFireRecovery@sdcounty.ca.gov. Business hours are from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Emails received after hours or on the weekends will be returned next business day.

Debris Removal

To help with the recovery process, the County of San Diego has placed fire debris disposal bins at locations near the burn area for fire survivors to dispose of debris from their properties. To help individual property owners that have lost their homes, the County is also offering to deliver bins to individual properties.  Fire debris bin program details can be found on the Valley Fire Debris Disposal Bin Program Webpage.The program will close down on December 5, 2020.  

Erosion Control

To help residents living in or around the burn area, the County has opened the Erosion Control Center to advise people on how to protect their homes and provide sand, sandbags and fiber rolls for free to help stabilize burned properties before rains arrive. Protect your property now from flooding. 

The Erosion Control Center is by appointment only. Call (888) 846-0800 for more information.

San Diego Volunteer Organizations Active in Disasters or VOAD:

Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, membership-based organization that builds resiliency in communities nationwide. It serves as the forum where organizations share knowledge and resources throughout the disaster cycle — preparation, response, recovery, and mitigation — to help disaster survivors and their communities.

For Disaster Recovery Guidance click here and fill out their Disaster Intake Form to follow up with a recovery team member.

Donation Information

The best way to help those impacted by the Valley Fire is a financial donation to a trusted local organization that can help meet the needs of survivors when they need it. Donations of  goods such as clothing and household items can sometimes be difficult to distribute as someone who just lost their home may not have a place to keep donated items. Learn more about donations after a disaster.