Brownsville HeraldA decision might come soon for a group of residents seeking relief after their claims related to storm damage were denied by FEMA last year.

Rio Grande Valley residents are part of a federal lawsuit against the Federal Emergency Management Administration, or FEMA, claiming they were denied disaster relief funds they qualified for and also failed to publish guidelines that would allow them to appeal the decision, according to court documents.

The lawsuit was originally filed in September of last year by attorneys from Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid on behalf of 26 plaintiffs. It now includes about 40 people as well as LUPE, La Union del Pueblo Entero, a local immigration advocacy group, who represents some of its members in the lawsuit, the documents show.

In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs claim that after severe storm and flood damage to their homes their claims were denied by FEMA officials, the lawsuit states.

One such plaintiff, Daniel Barbosa, of Mission, stated in an affidavit that his living room was destroyed and his roof damaged during storms, but FEMA only awarded him a little more than $2,000 for damage he said was estimated at more than $10,000.

Please visit the source link below to read the entire article.