RALEIGH — The Federal Emergency Management Agency has added Rowan County to its individual disaster assistance list, meaning that homeowners in the county who had uninsured damages or losses caused by Tropical Storm Helene are now eligible for assistance.

According to a release from FEMA, the addition of Rowan County to the list means that residents are now eligible for assistance with serious needs, displacement, temporary lodging, basic home repair costs, personal property loss and other disaster-caused needs.

There are multiple ways for people who need assistance to apply, including online at disasterassistance.gov, through the mobile FEMA app available on Google Play and the App Store and by calling the toll-free number 800-621-3362. The phone line is open every day and assistance is available in multiple languages. FEMA also has a video available at youtube.com/watch?v=LU7wzRjByhI providing accessible instructions on how to apply.

Residents will need a current phone number where they can be contacted, their address at the time of the storm and their current address, their Social Security number, a list of damage and losses,  banking information if direct deposit is requested and an insurance policy number, the agent or the company name if the property is insured. FEMA advised residents with homeowner’s, renter’s or flood insurance to file claims as soon as possible, as federal assistance cannot duplicate benefits for losses covered by insurance but can provide funding if insurance does not cover all of the disaster-related expenses.

Rowan County was one of twelve Piedmont counties added to the disaster assistance list, along with Cabarrus, Cherokee, Forsyth, Graham, Iredell, Lee, Nash, Stanly, Surrey, Union and Yadkin counties. Previously, Alexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Buncombe, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, Clay, Cleveland, Gaston, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Lincoln, Macon, Madison, McDowell, Mecklenburg, Mitchell, Polk, Rutherford, Swain, Transylvania, Watauga, Wilkes and Yancey counties along with the Eastern Band of Cherokees were authorized for household assistance.