Hurricane Helene Recovery Information for North Central Florida

October 2, 2024

DCF Announces Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (D-SNAP) in Response to Hurricane Helene and Milton

Department of Children and Families announced that Florida’s application for Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (D-SNAP) has been approved. D-SNAP provides food assistance for individuals and families impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton who are not receiving food assistance through the regular Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

D-SNAP will be implemented by the Department in phases and by county beginning Monday, October 28, 2024. Pre-registration is required by all applicants and can be found online at MyFLFamilies.com/DSNAP. To ensure the fastest service to households who are eligible to receive D-SNAP, the Department will begin the first phase by offering a phone option. In the coming weeks, the Department will host in-person D-SNAP events for residents who cannot participate by phone. The locations for in-person D-SNAP events will be announced soon, with all information available online.

Florida Behavioral Health Association has a Hurricane Resource center that houses toll-free hotlines, tips and more.

Visit: https://floridabha.org/hurricane-resource-center/

View and share Hurricane Helene Recovery Information by County. Updated version, Oct. 7.

Counties include: Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Columbia, Dixie, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Lafayette, Levy, Madison, Suwannee, Taylor, Union. Note that these lists are not all inclusive and there are many local efforts being offered in each community.

Updates as of October 7:

Electricity has been restored in most counties, and many of the PODs and Comfort Stations have been closed. The County Emergency Managers are also unfortunately having to switch their focus to Hurricane Milton and the potential impacts to each of their communities. We encourage everyone to sign up for local alerts sent out by their county Emergency Management and monitor their EOC Facebook page for the latest updates.

Food Distributions Posted

Alachua County
• FarmShare Distribution with Project Youth Build, Friday, October 25th, 9am – 11am, 635 NW 6th Street, Gainesville

Hamilton County
• Food Distribution, October 10, 9am – 10:30am, while supplies last
◦ Catholic Charities Lake City will provide a Food Distribution, JRE Lee Community Complex, 4280 SW CR 152, Jasper, FL

Union County
• FarmShare Food Distribution, Saturday, October 12, 8am – 8:30 am, 155 NW 3rd Street, Lake Butler, FL

Temporary services are available for those impacted by Hurricane Helene, such as the State Non-Congregate Sheltering Program. This is a short-term (6 months) program with a focus on transition disaster survivors into longer-term housing. You may be eligiblie if, your primary residence is located within one of the 23 FEMA designated counties, you have a valid FEMA registration number, you are a homeowner or renter, your home sustained major damage from Hurricane Helene and is not habitable, and you are not already receiving housing assistance from FEMA. To apply, complete the Assistance Request form on the Activate Hope
Hurricane Helene Recovery – Hope Florida or call 833-438-4673 (available 24/7).

Thank you to Cheryl Twombly of Florida Department of Children and Families for providing this information.