EARTHQUAKE: THE LONG ROAD BACK : Aid Stations : Hundreds Visit Disaster Assistance Centers in Search of Federal Agencies’ Financial Help

After the earthquake hit, Jerry and Sue Slater’s Simi Valley house was a mess.

A wall for the chimney and fireplace was split in two. A gaping hole in the roof left part of the structure exposed to the sky. The furnace and water heater were both severely damaged.

“We’re living in our motor home now,” Sue Slater said. “We don’t have any water or gas in the house.”

As her husband picked up loan application forms Thursday at the federal emergency office at Simi Valley’s Sycamore Drive Community Center, Slater sighed and shook her head anxiously.

“We’ll be grateful for anything we can get,” she said.

The Slaters were among hundreds of quake victims who descended on disaster assistance centers in Simi Valley and Fillmore to seek financial relief from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and other federal agencies.

Many residents stood in line for up to two hours, hoping to qualify for low-interest loans and grants to repair their homes and businesses. As they waited, many exchanged horror stories of the 6.6 magnitude temblor that shook up their homes, businesses and lives.

At the Simi Valley office, residents began lining up before 7 a.m. By 1:30 p.m. more than 1,100 people had arrived to make appointments to return later and fill out applications with FEMA workers. FEMA officials said they are meeting with residents by appointment only.

“We had no idea people would be waiting when we got here at 7 this morning,” said Ed Kirk, a FEMA volunteer who began giving people appointments immediately. “I didn’t want them to wait until this afternoon.”

The Simi Valley FEMA center was not supposed to open until 1 p.m., but officials threw open the doors half an hour early to begin processing the first disaster relief applications.

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Hugh Darby, manager of the Simi Valley center, estimated that FEMA workers will be able to help about 20 people an hour. Centers will be open seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. for as long as there is need.

“Some people won’t have appointments until two weeks or longer,” Darby said. “I’m sure it’s disappointing to some of them.”

At Fillmore’s FEMA center, housed at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church, officials said that within an hour of opening their doors they had appointments scheduled through Sunday.

“However long it takes, I’m waiting,” said Ron Stewart, who owns Ballard Furniture in Fillmore. The store has been in his family for three generations, and he’s not sure if he can rebuild.

“Right now what I have to do is unload all the merchandise,” Stewart said. “This is a big tragedy. I’ll have to be paying for this one for a lot of years.”

Quake victims will have to wait at least a week and maybe longer before they receive any financial assistance, FEMA officials said.

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Darby said emergency housing may be available for displaced residents in as little as a few days, depending on how quickly FEMA officials can approve applications.

“It will be a case-by-case thing,” said FEMA spokesman Earl Armstrong. “There’ll likely be a tremendous backlog of applications.”

Tom and Linda Nolan, who live in Granada Hills, said they expect to wait awhile before receiving any federal aid. They have some earthquake insurance, but it will not fully cover their losses, Tom Nolan said.

Their home, which is near the Northridge epicenter, suffered extensive damage in the temblor, Linda Nolan said. They had purchased the house, their first, only a year ago. Now it is uninhabitable.

“The house is off the foundation, we have cracks all over the house, and our pool looks like something from a ‘Poltergeist’ scene,” Nolan said. “This makes me wonder why I moved from New York.”

Roger Campbell, a Fillmore city councilman whose house was destroyed in the quake, said he wished there had been a faster response.

“Why the hell weren’t they here yesterday?” he said, as he stood in line and talked to Rep. Elton Gallegly (R-Simi Valley).

Gallegly said he had asked President Clinton the same question, and was told that a bureaucratic snafu had delayed Ventura County from getting federal disaster assistance. FEMA officials said they do not yet know how much financial assistance the county will ultimately receive. Nearly $4 million was made available immediately.

Ray Cardenas, whose Fillmore home was knocked off its foundation, said he didn’t know what kind of federal relief he could expect.

“Right now we just need temporary housing, but we’d like to rebuild,” Cardenas said.

Many residents, such as Amelia Wilson of Simi Valley, did not have any earthquake insurance and are hoping to use low-interest federal loans to rebuild their battered houses.

“We don’t have any money to fix our house,” Wilson said. “My husband is at home calling the mortgage company to see if they’ll give us a deferred payment.”

Wilson said she and her husband had purchased their first house about a year ago. Now the back-yard wall is damaged, and the brick columns holding her front porch have collapsed.

Maria Chieruzzi, a Simi Valley resident, said her house for the most part escaped major damage, but she is seeking federal assistance to pay for repairing her partially crumbled back-yard wall.

“It could have been worse,” Chieruzzi said, looking at the crowds in line. “We made it here--we need to thank God we’re all alive.”

How to Get Help

Several agencies are providing relief to Ventura County residents affected by the earthquake.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency can help residents obtain the following:

* Rent payments for temporary housing for up to 18 months.

* Grants to make minimal repairs to homes.

* Grants of up to $12,200 to meet serious disaster-related needs not covered by other federal aid programs.

* Unemployment payments of up to 26 weeks for workers left jobless by the disaster who do not qualify for state benefits.

* Low-interest loans from 3.625% to 7.25% to cover uninsured private property losses and from 4% to 8% for business property losses. Loans are available up to $100,000 for primary residences; $20,000 for personal property, including renter losses, and $1.5 million for businesses.

* Loans of up to $1.5 million for small businesses with disaster-related cash-flow problems.

* Loans of up to $500,000 for farmers to cover production and property losses.

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The Department of Housing and Urban Development also is providing rent vouchers and home-replacement aid.

To apply for FEMA or HUD aid, go to one of the county’s two disaster centers: Sycamore Drive Community Center, 1692 Sycamore Drive, Simi Valley, or Community Hall at St. Francis Catholic Church, 1058 Ventura St., Fillmore. The centers are open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. Or you can contact FEMA 24 hours a day at 1-800-462-9029.

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The American Red Cross operates emergency shelters at four sites in Ventura County:

* Royal High School, 1402 Royal Ave., Simi Valley.

* San Cayentano School, 514 Mountain View St., Fillmore.

* Veterans Memorial, 543 A St., Fillmore.

* Piru School, 3811 Center St., Piru.

Shelters are open 24 hours and provide beds, meals, minor medical treatment and mental health counseling.

The Simi Valley Water Department is providing safe drinking water. For information, call 583-6309 or 583-6321.