Disaster Planning and Recovery

We Are St. Pete Fund 

The City of St. Petersburg has partnered with the Pinellas Community Foundation to launch the We Are St. Pete Fund, the first of its kind for the City.  The fund will assist in fundraising for disaster relief for residents, small businesses, and City of St. Petersburg employees recovering from Hurricanes Helene and Milton. 

SBA Reopens Deadlines for Physical Damage Loans in Disaster Affected Areas Impacted by the 2024 Federal Funding Lapse

Note: The SBA has a presence at the EPI Center for anyone needing additional assistance.

 

BOOKMARK THESE LINKS

NEED TO REPORT SOMETHING?

RECOVERY RESOURCES

 

Help for Individuals and Families After a Disaster

LOST POWER? Find out how to get alerts from cell phone when power is out.

BUSINESS COMPLAINTS

If you believe a business violation presents an imminent threat to public health, safety or welfare, or may result in the imminent destruction of habitat or sensitive resources, please call (727) 464-6200.

WANT TO HELP?

Volunteer to Help: Fill out this form to be contacted in the event that your assistance is needed.

In support of hurricane relief efforts and communities in need, Tampa Bay Markets is partnering with Feeding Tampa Bay to create donation drop-off centers at each market location from October 5th through October 27th, 2024.

Hurricane Relief Cleanups with Keep Pinellas Beautiful:

Reuse, Recycling and Disposal Options for Businesses

EMERGENCY CONTACTS

Pinellas County Info. Center: 727-464-4333

Pinellas Emergency Management: 727-464-3800

St. Pete Emergency Management: 727-892-5200

St. Pete Citizens Info. Center: 727-893-7111

Residents who are deaf or hard of hearing may contact the CIC via online chat at bit.ly/PinellasChat

NEED HELP CLEANING UP? Residents who need help cleaning up property damage may call the Crisis Cleanup hotline at (844) 965-1386. 

CHECK AND MONITOR

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE

DoorDash Restaurant Disaster Relief Fund
  • Target: Restaurants affected by disasters and infrastructure failures (including incidents similar to the Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore)
  • Offering: $10,000 grants
  • Applications close (new round begins 12/3): December 2, 2024, at 6 pm ET
  • Link to toolkit

Note: Each toolkit contains program details, eligibility criteria, and promotional materials.

Small Business Hurricane Recovery Grant Program:  

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation (USCCF), in partnership with American Express, has just announced a new Small Business Hurricane Recovery Grant Program. Here are the key details:

Eligible small businesses can apply for their second round of grants beginning in mid-December. If you would like to be notified when applications open, please share your contact information through this form.

SBA Disaster Assistance Loans

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has activated Physical Disaster Loans and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL).

Deadlines for filing loan applications:

  • Hurricane Milton: Physical Property Damage: 12/10/24; Economic Injury 7/11/25
  • Hurricane Helene: Physical Property Damage: 11/27/24; Economic Injury 6/30/25

Submit applications online using the MySBA Loan Portal at www.lending.sba.gov. 

Please contact SBA’s Customer Service Center by email, www.disastercustomerservice@sba.gov, or phone, 1-800-659-2955.

PREPAREDNESS

Prepare, respond, recover.  This is the foundation of business continuity, and the only effective way to diffuse the impact of a hurricane.  From flood waters, property damage, power loss, spoiled food, and coping with the aftermath of a powerful storm could be very troublesome for small business owners.

Atlantic Hurricane season officially runs from June 1 through November 30 and it is important for business owners and managers to take a multi-pronged approach to preparedness and bounce back quickly following a storm.

Alert Pinellas – Receive alerts about emergencies and other important community news by signing up for Alert Pinellas, an emergency notification service for Pinellas County, Local Municipalities, and the Sheriff’s Office. This service is FREE to our residents. It allows you to sign up to receive urgent messages on a variety of situations, such as severe weather, boil water notices, missing persons, or evacuations.

State of Florida Disaster Biz – A website developed to provide businesses, small and large, easy access to critical information before, during and after a disaster. FloridaDisaster.biz is a partnership between the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) and the Florida Division of Emergency Management (DEM).

Click here to learn more and register your business today. For more information about disaster preparedness and recovery, please visit Hurricane Center.

  1. State Executive Orders
  2. Evacuation Information
  3. Emergency Shelters
  4. Debris Removal
  5. Sandbags
  6. Report Any Issue

Latest SBA Resources

PREPARE AND RESPOND: Disaster Preparedness Tools for Business

EMERGENCY KIT CHECKLIST

U.S. SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION (SBA)

Financial Assistance Status: ACTIVE

Low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) can be made available to businesses in Pinellas County after disasters. Businesses in Pinellas County might be eligible for both Physical and Economic Injury Disaster Loans from the SBA.  For more information, visit sba.gov/disaster.

To be considered for all forms of disaster assistance, applicants should first submit a claim with an insurer and register online at disasterassistance.gov or download the FEMA mobile app or call 800-621-3362.

Download Resource: The Three-Step Process: Disaster Loans

Download Resource: The Three-Step Process: Disaster Loans (en Espanol)

Apply for SBA Loan Programs

Business Damage Assessment Survey

Financial Assistance Status: ACTIVE

The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity has activated the Business Damage Assessment Survey to gather information about how Hurricane Debby is impacting local businesses. This survey will assess and inform recovery resources needed in impacted communities. This assessment does NOT serve as an application for resources, including the Small Business Emergency Bridge Loan Program.

Take the Survey: Business Damage Assessment Survey

Florida Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA)

The purpose of Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA) is to provide benefits and reemployment services to individuals whose employment or self-employment was lost or interrupted as a result of a major disaster. Workers can apply if they worked, were self-employed or were scheduled to begin work or self-employment and are not able to work or perform services because of physical damage or destruction to the place of employment as a direct result of the disaster.

Apply online: CONNECT.MyFlorida.com  or call 1-800-385-3920.

Local Support for Business

For help with recovering your business after a disaster, request assistance through The Greenhouse to be partnered with an appropriate mentor or consultant with our partners at SCORE Pinellas and SBDC at Pinellas County Economic Development. Resource partners can also help businesses apply for disaster loans and provide guidance on how to get up and running after a hurricane strikes.

St. Petersburg Chamber of Commerce Post-Hurricane Helene Resources: 

Additional Disaster Recovery Resources

  • Disaster Contractors: If your business or home has incurred damage due to the storm, do not hire an unlicensed contractor. Before hiring any contractor, ask for their name and license number to verify their eligibility to work in Pinellas County: use the County’s Contractor Search .
  • Report unlicensed contracting by calling (727) 582-6767 or submit a report online. The Disaster Contractor’s Network contains a list of licensed contractors that can be searched by name, county, and type at www.DCNonline.org.

RECOVER: After the Storm

If your business is damaged or you experienced any economic loss from a designated disaster, you may be eligible to apply for immediate assistance through emergency loans. Not only is it important to determine the amount that is needed to sustain your business and get back in operation, a business must analyze what is feasible to be able to pay back the withdrawn amount.

For a breakdown of information on programs to fit your needs, visit our partner’s resource with SBDC HERE.