Guam residents who have received federal disaster assistance for Typhoon Mawar should remember to use the grant only for its intended purpose – expenses to help make your home safe, sanitary and functional.

Be sure to document how you used those disaster funds and keep all receipts for at least three years.

Disaster grants intended for home repairs are not for regular living expenses, such as utilities, food, medical or dental bills, travel, entertainment, or any expenses not directly related to the disaster.

If residents spend the payment on anything other than the intended purpose, they may be denied future disaster assistance. In some cases, FEMA will ask that the money be returned.

If you receive an insurance settlement to cover the same expenses, you should pay FEMA back.

If you haven’t applied for federal disaster assistance yet, you may do so at disasterassistance.gov, by using the FEMA mobile app, by calling 800-621-3362 (The Helpline is available 24 hours a day/ 7 days a week at no cost for Guam residents) or by stopping by a Disaster Recovery Center located at Guam Community College, Dededo Sports Complex, C.L. Taitano Elementary School and Inarahan Community Center (open seven days a week 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.).

Multilingual specialists are available.

For an accessible video on how to apply for assistance, check here.

For information on Guam’s disaster recovery, visit our website.

Follow FEMA at Twitter and Facebook.