NEW YORK—Displaced Hurricane Sandy victims who have been living in hotels under a federal program have until Sept. 16 to find a place to live. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), one of the programs that have been housing dozens of Sandy victims in hotels since the storm struck in Oct. 2012, has been extended in two-week increments.
Other programs have included a New York City-sponsored program run through the Department of Homeless Services. A federal judge extended that program indefinitely in May, pending more permanent housing arrangements when several hundred evacuees were facing imminent eviction. Some of the remaining people living in hotels, at least 28 households, are covered under the city program, while others are being housed under the FEMA program, called Transitional Sheltering Assistance, or TSA.
In an Aug. 31 statement about the impending end of the TSA program, FEMA stated that they had approved another 15-day extension at the request of the state of New York. Only those who are eligible for the extension can apply to stay. Eligibility may include compliance with certain factors, including things such as a pending living situation that is not quite ready yet.
A spokesman for FEMA said that of the households still living in hotels, 28 are part of the TSA program. The spokesman also said that about 6,000 New York households throughout the state have been assisted through the federal program.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
