Almost 5,000 Westchester residents have registered to seek assistance from FEMA in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, including hundreds who came in person to the Disaster Recovery Center (DRC) in White Plains, County Executive Robert P. Astorino said Wednesday.

At a press conference at the Westchester County Center, Astorino also announced the DRC will remain open until Dec. 21 on a six-day schedule. The DRC will operate Monday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the County Center, 198 Central Avenue.

"The disaster recovery center was opened as a place where residents could get assistance in person from FEMA, the Small Business Administration, Con Edison and a variety of non-profit and county government agencies," Astorino said. "I wanted to be sure that that our residents could obtain whatever help they needed – and in one location. Though the storm has passed, we continue to provide a broad range of help to those who were impacted by Hurricane Sandy."

Astorino said 750 Westchester residents have visited the DRC so far to get assistance from FEMA or from county government, Con Edison and the nonprofit agencies represented there.

The county executive said preliminary estimates showed the storm caused more than $42 million in damages to county-owned facilities alone. It also damaged public infrastructure and private property in every municipality in the county. Westchester and its municipalities are eligible to seek federal reimbursement for damages and other costs associated with the storm.

Astorino said 4,927 Westchester residents have registered for assistance from FEMA so far. Though the DRC will close on Dec. 21, residents will be able to register with FEMA on line or by phone through Dec. 31.

With Westchester being declared a disaster area by President Obama, residents are eligible to apply for disaster aid, along with local governments and non-profit agencies. The first step is to register by calling FEMA's registration number (800) 621-3362 or going to www.disasterassistance.gov. For those with speech or hearing disabilities, use the TTY number at (800) 462-7585.

"There is still time to register with FEMA if you suffered losses as a result of Hurricane Sandy that will not be covered by private insurance," Astorino said.     

Hurricane Sandy barreled into Westchester on Oct. 29, bringing high winds that toppled hundreds of trees and caused coastal flooding along the Long Island Sound and Hudson River. During the height of the storm, two boys were killed in North Salem when a tree fell on a home, and a Yonkers man died when his car struck a tree that had fallen across the Sprain Brook Parkway in Yonkers. 

Astorino offered a snapshot of the physical damage from Hurricane Sandy, saying the storm:

• Destroyed four homes - in Verplanck and Croton-on-Hudson;
• Damaged more than 200 homes as a result of flooding or falling trees;
• Damaged more than 50 businesses as a result of coastal flooding in Yonkers, Irvington, New Rochelle, Rye, Port Chester and the village of Mamaroneck;
• Caused extensive damage to a variety of county-owned facilities, including Rye Playland, Glen Island Park, the Yonkers Wastewater Treatment Plant and six county pump stations;
• Knocked out telephone, cable and Internet service to thousands of homes and businesses, and
• Knocked out electrical power to more than 300,000 customers – 280,000 served by Con Edison and 31,000 served by NYSEG.

Astorino said that after the storm he convened a meeting of municipal leaders to review the coordination between county and local governments, assess Con Edison's performance and make suggestions to the utility on how it could be improved.

"A key lessons shared by all of us was that Con Edison needs to do a much better job of communicating to the public," he said. "In addition, the liaisons it assigns to local municipalities need to have the training, skills and authority to get the job done."

Residents and business owners do not have to come to the County Center to apply for assistance from FEMA but can do so if they prefer to speak with representatives face-to-face, he said.

In addition to FEMA, members of the Department of Social Services and other county departments remain on hand at the DRC to help residents. There also are representatives from the Small Business Administration, who can explain low-interest loan packages available to individuals, nonprofits and businesses of any size.

These loans are for the repair or replacement of real estate and/or personal property damaged by the storm and related flooding, officials said. People who register with FEMA may be sent a loan application from the SBA. No one is obligated to take out a loan, according to the SBA. Applicants have six months after approval to decide whether to accept the loan.

Astorino said it is imperative that residents and businesses document their losses with photographs and with receipts from repairs. In addition, those impacted must contact their insurance company to find out what – if anything – is covered.

FEMA advised that all persons applying for assistance should be prepared to provide:

• Social Security number (including your spouse's if applicable)
• Private insurance information, if available
• Address and ZIP code of the damaged property
• Directions to the damaged home or property
• Daytime telephone number
• An address where you can receive mail.