FEMA Offers Special Jobless Benefits for Disaster Victims

If you are unemployed as a direct result of Hurricane Irene, there may be help for you from the federal government. The official township website reports that Federal Emergency Management Agency says Disaster Unemployment Assistance is available to New Jersey workers, whether they work for themselves or a separate employer, who are unable to work because of the storm.

If you need the assistance, there are several things to do:

File for unemployment insurance benefits. Call the nearest state Re-employment Call Center office in Elizabeth at 201-601-4100. The application deadline for unemployment benefits in Morris County is Oct. 3, and claims filed later than that may be ineligible for payment.

If the state determines that you are not eligible for unemployment assistance, you may qualify for the Disaster Unemployment Assistance program.

The disaster assistance program is intended to aid workers and self-employed individuals such as artists, farmers and farm workers, freelance writers and photographers, and others who normally would not be eligible for unemployment benefits.

More information on available help can be found at the Morris County Disaster Recovery Center in the Parsippany Police Athletic League building at 33 Baldwin Road, which is open 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., seven days a week, until further notice.