Deadline Extended for Fire Disaster Assistance : Aid: Filing period is lengthened amid concern about potential flood damage in areas denuded by fires.

An application period for disaster assistance programs has been extended 60 days because of the potential for flooding in fire-damaged areas, state and federal officials announced Monday.

The application period was to have ended Monday, in keeping with the standard 60-day deadline following a presidential declaration. The new deadline is Feb. 25.

After Gov. Pete Wilson made state disaster funds available following the outbreak of fires on Oct. 26, President Clinton declared the fires a major disaster for Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego and Ventura counties. The declaration made Federal Emergency Management Agency disaster funds available to individuals and businesses affected by fires.

But concern for fire-related problems prompted an amendment to the declaration on Nov. 19 to include damage from soil erosion, landslides, flooding and mudslides, state and federal officials said. The amendment and the fact that people are still making applications at disaster centers resulted in the deadline extension, said Don Mitchell, public information officer with the California Office of Emergency Services.

“We’re expecting possible rain, so it’s good for us to be in place,” he said. “What we’re really concerned about is flooding.”

More than 700 people have registered for loans at the Community Disaster Recovery and Preparedness Center in Laguna Beach, FEMA spokeswoman Cory La Bianca said.

“There’s still people coming into apply. . . . People just realized that they could use a little bit more time,” she said. “We’ve been real busy today.”

More than 2,400 people throughout Southern California have registered for assistance.

The U.S. Small Business Administration is also extending its filing deadline to Feb. 25 for SBA disaster loan assistance to individuals and business owners who suffered property damage in the fires. To date, the SBA has approved 460 disaster loans totaling more than $31 million to Southern California residents and business owners.

Even though the filing deadline has been extended, officials strongly encourage all those who had fire damage to apply for a loan as soon as possible.

For more information, call (800) 462-9029.