On Wednesday April 11th at 3PM, at the Centro Hispano attorneys, law students, and paralegals will run a pop-up pro bono legal clinic to assist Puerto Rican evacuees from Hurricane Maria in Pennsylvania to:
• Register with FEMA
• Submit claims to FEMA
• Appeal FEMA claim denials
• Address other legal matters
The legal clinic is organized by the Hispanic Bar Association of Pennsylvania, the Toll Public Interest Center at the University of Pennsylvania Law School, The Vanguard Group, Santander Bank, Gateway, Ceiba, and the Centro Hispano.
More than six months have passed since Hurricane Maria lashed the 3.4 million American citizens living in Puerto Rico with sustained winds of 155 MPH, yet most of the island (which is only slightly larger than Connecticut) is still without electricity, making this blackout the largest major power outage in US history. Without electricity and crucial amenities, many people are fleeing Puerto Rico out of necessity.
Pennsylvania is a major destination for evacuee; a recent report by the Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter College estimates that more than 56,000 Puerto Ricans are expected to evacuate to the Keystone State before 2019. In Reading alone the number is over 1,200 Puerto Ricans and rising.
Evacuees interested in receiving assistance to connect with FEMA and secure disaster relief through the free legal clinic must register by visiting: http://bit.ly/ReadingFEMA; or by calling the Centro Hispano at 484-575-1429.
Victims of Hurricane Maria have until June 20, 2018 to file a claim with FEMA and 60 days to appeal a denial by FEMA if they filed a claim and were denied disaster relief.
Please share this post with local churches, families, and organizations that are working with evacuees from Puerto Rico that would like to meet with a legal professional for assistance.
Thank you in advance for your support of the work of the Centro Hispano.
