FEMA Fact Sheet: Oct. 14, 2021
DR-4611-LA FS 027
October 2021
Financial assistance for reburials may be available to Louisiana survivors after Hurricane
Ida caused damage to cemeteries.
Who is Eligible and What is Covered?
Survivors may be eligible for reburial assistance from FEMA, if:
o The damage to the grave site or above-ground vault occurred as a result of Hurricane Ida.
o The damage took place in one of the 25 designated parishes: Ascension, Assumption, East Baton Rouge,
East Feliciana, Iberia, Iberville, Jefferson, Lafourche, Livingston, Orleans, Plaquemines, Pointe Coupee, St.
Bernard, St. Charles, St. Helena, St. James, St. John the Baptist, St. Martin, St. Mary, St. Tammany,
Tangipahoa, Terrebonne, Washington, West Baton Rouge and West Feliciana.
o The grave or vault was in a privately owned, licensed cemetery or burial facility and the reburial costs are the
legal responsibility of an individual and not the cemetery.
Assistance for reburial may include:
o Transfer of remains, including locating, gathering, and identifying displaced caskets
o Caskets, containers, vaults, or urns that were damaged
o Burial plot
o Markers or headstones that were damaged due to unearthed remains
o Necessary costs related to identifying remains
o Gravesite – necessary work to rebury
Individual Assistance vs Public Assistance; Private and Public Cemeteries
FEMA’s Individual Assistance (IA) program is available for survivors whose relatives were laid to rest in either publicly
or privately owned cemeteries. FEMA recommends this as the best approach for survivors who need help with
reburials.
▪ A public cemetery is defined as a facility that is owned and operated by an eligible government entity.
Abandoned private cemeteries may be considered public if a government entity assumes permanent legal
responsibility for the cemetery, including its operation and maintenance.
While publicly-owned cemeteries can be reimbursed through FEMA’s Public Assistance (PA) program, this alternative
is only available when no family member can be found who could claim responsibility for the deceased.
PA assistance for publicly owned cemeteries is limited to reducing immediate threats to public safety.
For More Information or to Apply for Assistance
For additional information on reburial assistance in publicly owned cemeteries, contact the Louisiana Statewide
Cemetery Response Task Force at 225-326-6056 or via email at cemeterytaskforce@ag.louisiana.gov.
The fastest and easiest way to apply is by visiting Disasterassistance.gov.
▪ If it is not possible to apply online, call 800-621-3362 (TTY: 800-462-7585). The toll-free telephone lines
operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you use a relay service, such as video relay service (VRS),
captioned telephone service or others, give FEMA the number for that service.
FEMA Disaster Recovery Centers have opened in several hurricane-affected parishes. Check the FEMA App or
visit the FEMA DRC Locator to find a location near you and the hours of operation.
For the latest information on Hurricane Ida visit fema.gov/disaster/4611. Follow us on Twitter at
twitter.com/FEMARegion6 and like us on Facebook at facebook.com/FEMARegion6/.
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