Bloomberg Announces 'Rapid Repair' Program To Speed Up Post-Sandy Recovery
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is announcing a program to help speed up repairs to homes damaged by Superstorm Sandy.
Bloomberg said Friday that the program called "NYC Rapid Repair" is aimed at getting as many people back into their homes as quickly as possible.
He said that starting Tuesday, New Yorkers whose homes were damaged in the storm can go to a city restoration center, get a Federal Emergency Management Agency number and sign up.
"You have to have a FEMA ID number. The FEMA ID number will be given you regardless of whether you have insurance, regardless of how much damage you have, regardless of whether you have a mortgage. Just call FEMA, they will give you a number and then you have to just ask for the assistance," Bloomberg said.
To Contact FEMA, call 1 (800) 621-FEMA (3362)
He said that once a homeowner signs up, a contractor will come and assess the damage and "within a short time, the work will be done."
Bloomberg said he expects FEMA to pay for most of the repairs.
He said the program will be efficient and save the city, state and federal government money because contractors can work on multiple buildings in one area.
Please offer your thoughts in the comments section below ...
(TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
