AUSTIN, Texas—More than 22,000 Texans battered by flooding over the last two years settled claims with the National Flood Insurance Program for over $1 billion, disaster recovery officials said today.Severe storms and flooding over the last two years resulted in six federal disaster declarations in Texas, affecting more than half of the state’s 254 counties, many on multiple occasions. Residents are still picking up the pieces from flood-related disaster declarations in March, April and May-June this year.About 100,000 individuals and families registered with FEMA for federal assistance during the 2015-2016 recovery....

Labor Day weekend is a time for a lot of people to head out on fun and relaxing vacations and celebrate the last “official” days of summer. Here, it’s historically a time we find ourselves at our busiest. Labor Day lies right smack dab in the middle of peak hurricane season—and if you’re like us and have been following the forecasts, you might know a little bit about what’s on our radars. Right now, we’re following several different storms forecast to hit two vastly different areas: the Big Island of...

BATON ROUGE, La. — Returning to school in late August brings a sense of routine to most children across the country. But in Louisiana there are many young people whose lives are far from normal. They are still living the aftermath of storms and widespread floods that drove tens of thousands from their homes and left many living with relatives, or in hotels or shelters.Some schools that were battered by the storms are not able to open on time, so even students whose homes were not affected are unable to resume...

BATON ROUGE, La. – Disaster recovery centers will open Thursday, Aug. 25, in East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Livingston and St. Landry parishes to help Louisiana flood survivors. The centers are open 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Sunday until further notice. The disaster recovery centers are located at the following addresses: St. Louis King of France Catholic Church2121 N. Sherwood Forest Dr.Baton Rouge, La. 70815 Early Learning Center Gym9414 Plank Rd.Clinton, La. 70772 Word Ministries1960 W. Laurel Ave.Eunice, La. 70535 There also are two mobile disaster recovery centers: St. Joseph Catholic Church15710 Highway 16French Settlement,...

Baton Rouge, La. — As Louisianans repair or rebuild their homes damaged by August floods, FEMA and local hardware and home improvement stores have teamed up to provide free information, tips and literature on making homes stronger and safer.FEMA mitigation specialists will be on hand to provide information at area Home Depots from  Aug. 25 through Sept. 10. They will be available to answer questions and offer home improvement tips and proven methods to prevent and lessen damage from future disasters. Most of the information is geared for do-it-yourself work and...