Mayor of NC town says daughter was denied $750 fund from FEMA after home destroyed

The daughter of Newland, North Carolina’s mayor who lost her home in Hurricane Helene was turned down for the $750 FEMA emergency grant, she says.

Mayor Derek Roberts says that his daughter applied for the $750 Serious Needs Assistance from FEMA after her home was seriously damaged by floodwaters two weeks ago, he told Fox News.

“My daughter, whose house got completely wiped out, she has no flood insurance. She meets with a FEMA person, applies for everything…she doesn’t get the $750 that Kamala says she is supposed to get,” Roberts said.

“That’s literally all she got. Her entire first floor is wiped out, we hauled everything off, it’s gone…that won’t even cover what’s in her refrigerator.”

The Serious Needs Assistance grant was mentioned by Vice President Kamala Harris last week and was immediately panned by those who say it was too little for those incurring massive amounts of damage from the hurricane. 

FEMA says that the $750 is intended to be used as an upfront payment for immediate needs such as food and medication.

Storm victims will be eligible for additional funds based on assessments by the agency, the New York Post reports.

As of Tuesday, FEMA has paid out $420 million to communities impacted by the hurricane.

Residents of North Carolina, however, have called out the government agency for leaving them behind in the aftermath of Helene, which destroyed much of the western part of the state.