Philadelphia Center For Hurricane Victims Closes
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Philadelphia has closed down its Disaster Assistance Center for victims of Hurricane Maria, three months after the devastating storm killed an unknown number of people and left the island without electricity.
The center helped almost 2,000 people recover since it opened October 11th.
At its peak, the center helped more than 300 people in a single week, but on its final day, about a dozen people came in.
Idale says she had no serious storm damage at first, but was facing at least another three months without power when she decided to head to Philadelphia.
She said she needed to come to Philadelphia to find a good job and a place to live because in Puerto Rico there's no work.
While the need remains, Office of Emergency Management director Dan Bradley says it's slowed to a point where service providers can assist from their community-based locations. But he's pleased with the center's performance.
"This is the longest-running operation OEM has had in its history, and this was all done without federal funding, which in every other disaster situation is a critical factor for us," he said.
Evacuees can still get help online by clicking HERE.
