COVID-19 Suspends Tornado Relief Operations
Mar 22 2020

Saturday, March 21 at 8:20 p.m.

FEMA and TEMA say the will suspend their in-person disaster recovery operations in Tennessee after Sunday, citing the threat of COVID-19.

The decision means that victims of the Super Tuesday tornadoes will have to apply for aid online or by phone. FEMA had opened offices in Davidson, Wilson and Putnam counties.

Tornado survivors can register, check the status of their applications and get answers to questions about disaster assistance in several ways:

  • Visit DisasterAssistance.gov
  • Download the FEMA App
  • Call 800-621-3362 (800-462-7585 TTY). Multilingual operators are available. The toll-free numbers are open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. local time, seven days a week.

“Health and safety are FEMA’s highest priorities – for survivors and for FEMA personnel working on recovery,” FEMA federal coordinating officer Myra Shird said in a prepared statement. “We know that survivors need our help and we intend to continue providing assistance even as we take precautions to ensure health and safety in our operations.”

The deadline to apply for FEMA aid is May 4.

— Chas Sisk