PEARL, Miss. - Mississippi residents who couldn’t work as a direct result of the March 24-25 severe weather and tornadoes may be eligible for Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA).
Eligible residents who live or work in Carroll, Humphreys, Monroe, Montgomery, Panola or Sharkey counties can file a claim with the Mississippi Department of Employment Security to request benefits. You must have been unemployed for more than one week following the March storms to be eligible. Each claim will be reviewed to determine eligibility. FEMA funds DUA, but the Mississippi Department of Employment Security administers the program.
Self-employed and unemployed individuals may qualify. In addition, residents who were unable to reach their place of business because the disaster prevented their travel, or those who were scheduled to begin work, but couldn’t because of the storms, may also apply.
Others who may be eligible for DUA include those who:
Became the major wage earner for the household because of a disaster-related death;
Cannot work because of an injury caused as a direct result of the storms;
Could not work or lost work because of physical damage or destruction of a business, or
Are unable to work because of the physical inaccessibility of the place of employment due to its closure.
To apply for DUA, visit www.mdes.ms.gov or call 601-493-9428 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The deadline to apply for Disaster Unemployment Assistance is May 8, 2023.
For the latest information on recovery from Mississippi tornadoes, visit March 24 2023 Severe Weather Disaster Information - MEMA (msema.org) and 4697 | FEMA.gov. Follow FEMA Region 4 (@femaregion4 ) / Twitter and at facebook.com/fema.
Source: Department of Homeland Security, Federal Emergency Management Agency