Page 2 - Florida Sentinel 10-7-22

Hurricane Ian Assistance For
Homeless Family Of 5 Survives Early Morning Shooting
A family of five were asleep in their car when someone fired shots into it. The family consists of a father, a mother, who is 9 weeks pregnant, a 3-year-old girl, a 4-year-old boy, and a 9-year-old girl, who were sleeping in the car because they are homeless. The shooting took place around 4:30 a.m., in a parking lot near the 2200 block of N. Oregon, across from the Martin Luther King, Jr. Recreation Com- plex.
Tampa Police Chief Mary O’Connor said, "Unfortunately we aren’t coming up with a lot, but we know someone out there knows who hurt this family. Everything indicates that this is random and that is disturbing."
The father woke up and saw the headlights of the suspect vehicle. Chief O'Connor said he yelled for "everyone to get down."
A bullet grazed the mother's head. She is ex- pected to be alright.
Chief O'Connor said the family used to live in Tampa, but moved out of state. They re- turned to the city and were only here for three days, so far.
There’s a family member nearby who didn’t have room for them, the police chief explained. The children are currently staying with the rel- ative while the parents are at St. Joseph's Hos- pital.
Chief O'Connor said a witness may have spotted a dark-colored, two-door car, but it has not been identified as the suspect vehicle. It's also unclear how many people may have fired shots at the car.
Chief O’Connor said, "Homelessness is a problem in the United States. This family is down on their luck and living in their car for the past few days.
"Our homeless liaisons and other depart- ments will work with the family this morning to come up with a voucher for Choice Hotels to put them up for the next week or more. So we do have a place for the family to go once they're released from the hospital."
Detectives are urging anyone with informa- tion related to this incident or
Vehicle with multiple bullet holes.
A side view of the vehicle shot into early Wednesday morning.
anyone who may have seen a dark colored, 2- door sedan, possibly a 2006-2012 model, in the area this morning to call Tampa PD at 813-231-6130 or share a tip via Tip411, which is accessible through the TampaPD app; or contact CrimeStoppers of Tampa Bay with any information. The number is 1--800-873-8477.
Affected Residents
FEMA, the Federal Emer- gency Management Agency, has informed Florida home- owners and renters in Char- lotte, Collier, DeSoto, Hardee, Hillsborough, Lee, Manatee, Pinellas, and Sara- sota counties who were af- fected by Hurricane Ian may apply for FEMA disaster as- sistance.
Survivors can apply for disaster assistance at www.disasterassistance.go v, by calling 800-621-3362 from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Eastern Time, or by using the https://www.fema.go v/about/news-multime- dia/mobile-products. If you use a relay service such as video relay service (VRS), captioned telephone service or others, give FEMA the number for that service.
When you apply for assis- tance, have the following in- formation ready:
• A current phone number where you can be contacted
• Your address at the time of the disaster and the ad- dress where you are now staying
• Your Social Security number
• A general list of damage and losses
• Banking information if you choose direct deposit
• If insured, the policy
number or the agent and/or the company name
Survivors may be eligible to receive assistance for unin- sured and underinsured damage and losses resulting from the Hurricane Ian. If you have homeowners, renters, or flood insurance, you should file a claim as soon as possible. FEMA can- not duplicate benefits for losses covered by insurance. If your policy does not cover all your disaster expenses, you may be eligible for fed- eral assistance.
Take photos to document damage and begin cleanup and repairs to prevent further damage. Remember to keep receipts from all purchases related to the cleanup and re- pair.
Disaster assistance may include financial help with temporary lodging and home repairs, as well as other dis- aster-related expenses.
For an accessible video on how to apply for assistance go to, youtube.com/- watch?v=WZGpWI2RCNw.
For information on Florida’s recovery from Hur- ricane Ian, visit fema.gov/- disaster/hurricane-ian. Follow FEMA on Twitter at FEMA Region 4 (@fe- maregion4) / Twitter and at facebook.com/fema.
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