Time running out to apply for Hurricane Matthew FEMA disaster assistance

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — It’s been more than a month since Hurricane Matthew, but FEMA’s continued presence in St. Augustine goes to show there’s still more work to be done and more people who need help.

One of those people is Geraldine Macleod.

“Without [FEMA], we would have still nothing, we wouldn't have nothing,” said Macleod.

Macleod is one of more than a dozen people who stopped by the Willie Galimore Community Center in Lincolnville Friday, where FEMA has set up a mobile disaster recovery center.

For Macleod, FEMA was her only option for help after Hurricane Matthew destroyed her Anastasia Island home.

“We had four feet of water in our house, we lost our bed, our TV, our refrigerator. All our cooking stuff, the only thing we could basically salvage is our clothes,” said Macleod.

So far, she said FEMA has given her $1,500 to try to recover what they lost and for lodging.

FEMA said it’s registered more than 4,000 people in St. Johns County alone.

According to Macleod, she now has no choice but to leave St. Augustine to start over somewhere else.

“We worked so many years to have what we have, and now we have nothing,” said Macleod.

The mobile disaster recovery center will remain at the Galimore Center on Saturday, Monday and Tuesday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. On Wednesday, FEMA workers will be at the Crescent Beach Park on 6930 A1A South St. until Saturday, Nov. 19.

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Cox Media Group