Small Business Administration Approves Loans for Panhandle Wildfire Recovery

AUSTIN, Texas — Governor Greg Abbott announced Wednesday that the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has greenlit his request for disaster declarations in Texas communities ravaged by wildfires in the Panhandle. The affected Texas counties include Armstrong, Carson, Donley, Gray, Hansford, Hemphill, Hutchinson, Lipscomb, Moore, Potter, Randall, Roberts, Sherman, and Wheeler.

"These disaster declarations will help Texans in communities affected by the Smokehouse Creek and Windy Deuce wildfires receive critical financial assistance they need as they continue to recover and rebuild," Governor Abbott stated. "Low-interest loans will be made available by the SBA to qualifying Texans who need assistance to rebuild their homes and businesses from these wildfires. I thank the Texas Division of Emergency Management for their work with our federal partners to ensure impacted communities have the resources and assistance they need to move forward."

The SBA has granted access to its Home Disaster Loans, Business Physical Disaster Loans, and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program. These will provide low-interest loans to qualifying homeowners, renters, and businesses in the affected communities following the Smokehouse Creek Fire and the Windy Deuce Fire.

Applicants may apply online, receive additional disaster assistance information, and download applications at sba.gov/disaster. They can also contact SBA’s Customer Service Center at (800) 659-2955 or email [email protected] for more information on SBA disaster assistance.

For individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, they can dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services. Completed applications should be mailed to U.S. Small Business Administration, Processing and Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport Road, Fort Worth, TX 76155.

SBA representatives will open two Disaster Loan Outreach Centers to explain the application process, assist with completing applications, and address questions about the disaster loan programs.

Starting Thursday, a Disaster Loan Outreach Center will be located at the Hemphill County Courthouse at 400 Main St. in Canadian, TX 79014, open from 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays.

Starting Thursday, another center will be located at The Dome Civic Center & Convention Center at 1113 Bulldog Blvd. in Borger, TX 79007. It will be open weekdays from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. and from 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. on Saturdays.

Governor Abbott continues to take action to provide all available resources to help support local communities and protect Texans from these devastating wildfires. This includes requesting a disaster declaration from the SBA, granting a waiver for the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts to assist with fueling capabilities amid the wildfire response, and requesting joint preliminary damage assessments with local, state, and federal officials in impacted communities.

Abbott has also directed the Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) to deploy additional state emergency response resources and raise the readiness level of the State Emergency Operations Center to support the priority needs of communities facing impacts from these wildfires.

Furthermore, Abbott received approval from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for a Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) request for the Smokehouse Creek Fire and Windy Deuce Fire. This means that Texas will be eligible for 75% reimbursement from the federal government for costs associated with fighting those fires.

With elevated-to-extremely-critical fire weather conditions expected across various regions, state emergency response resources are prepared to respond and support local officials. Texans are urged to implement wildfire prevention measures, including avoiding any activity that causes sparks, preparing a family emergency plan, and monitoring local weather reports. Wildfire prevention resources can be accessed at TexasReady.gov.