NEPTUNE - A Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) State Disaster Recovery Center (DRC) opened in Court House Tue., Sept. 13 to provide face-to-face assistance to those who suffered damage from Hurricane Irene.

The center is located at the library in the county Emergency Management Communications Center, 30 Mechanic St.

The center will be open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., seven days a week, until further notice. Residents are urged to register with FEMA before visiting the center.

There are three ways to register - go to www.disasterassistance.gov, to m.fema.gov or call FEMA toll-free, 800-621-FEMA (3362). Those with access or functional needs and who use a TTY, may call 800-462-7585; or, use 711 or Video Relay Service to call 800-621-3362. Telephone lines are open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. ET; multilingual operators are available.
.
The FEMA/State Joint Information Center will announce additional DRC openings as they occur.

At the center, visitors can:
* Receive information about different types of state and federal disaster assistance.
*Get help completing applications for U.S. Small Business Administration low-interest disaster loans for homeowners, renters, businesses of all sizes and private nonprofit organizations.
* Inquire about the status of applications for federal assistance.
* Receive referrals to voluntary organizations to help with immediate unmet needs.
* Learn cost-effective measures to reduce the impact of future disaster losses.
- Nearly $38 million in federal disaster assistance to date is helping fund the ways New Jerseyans are recovering from Hurricane Irene.

A summary of assistance as of Sept. 11 for the hardest hit counties:
*31,400 individuals have registered with FEMA for disaster assistance, averaging more than 2,850 per day
*Nearly $36 million in disaster assistance for housing needs in 11 days
*More than $2 million in Other Needs Assistance, for other necessary expenses and serious needs (i.e. personal property, transportation, medical and dental expenses, funeral and burial expenses)

Disaster Recovery Centers have opened in the hardest-hit counties: Passaic, Bergen, Somerset, Morris, Essex, Union, Middlesex, Monmouth, Hudson, Warren, Sussex, Gloucester, Cumberland and Cape May