Portable Loan Outreach Center Arrives in Beaufort County; SBA Sets Incident Period for Hurricane Helene in South Carolina

ATLANTA - The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced the opening of a Portable Loan Outreach Center (PLOC) in Beauford County located at the Beaufort County Black Chamber of Commerce, on Wednesday, Nov. 6, at 9 a.m. to meet disaster survivors where they are. The PLOC will be closed on Nov. 11, in observance of Veterans Day, and will close permanently on Nov. 14, at 6 p.m.

"SBA's Business Recovery Centers are a cornerstone of our support for business owners," said Francisco Sánchez, Jr., associate administrator for the Office of Disaster Recovery and Resilience at the Small Business Administration. "At these centers, business owners can meet face-to-face with specialists to apply for disaster loans and access a wide range of resources to guide them through their recovery."

Customer Service Representatives from the SBA are at all recovery centers in South Carolina where survivors can get help with their SBA disaster loan application. SBA's Customer Service Representatives can answer questions, help survivors complete their disaster loan application, accept documents, and provide updates on an application's status. Walk-ins are accepted, but you can schedule an in-person appointment at an SBA Business Recovery Center in advance. The hours of operation for the SBA Centers are as follows:

Business Recovery Center (BRC)

Lexington County

Lexington County Library

5440 Augusta Road

Lexington, SC 29072

Hours: Monday - Thursday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Friday - 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Saturday - 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Closed: Sunday

Business Recovery Center (BRC)

Greenville County

Next Innovation Center

411 University Ridge

Greenville, SC 29601

Hours: Monday - Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Saturday - 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Closed: Sunday

Portable Loan Outreach Center (PLOC)

Beaufort County

Beaufort County Black Chamber of Commerce

711 Bladen St

Beaufort, SC 29902

Opening: Wednesday, Nov. 6, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Hours: Monday - Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Saturday Closed

Closed on Veteran's Day, Nov. 11

Closed: Permanently closes Thursday, Nov. 14

The SBA has adjusted the incident period for the Hurricane Helene disaster. It is accepting disaster loan applications for damages that occurred from Sept. 25 through Oct. 7, 2024.

The disaster declaration now covers Abbeville, Aiken, Allendale, Anderson, Bamberg, Barnwell, Beaufort, Cherokee, Chester, Edgefield, Fairfield, Greenville, Greenwood, Hampton, Jasper, Kershaw, Laurens, Lexington, McCormick, Newberry, Oconee, Orangeburg, Pickens, Richland, Saluda, Spartanburg, Union, York and the Catawba Indian Nation in South Carolina which are eligible for both Physical and Economic Injury Disaster Loans from the SBA. Small businesses and most private nonprofit organizations in the following adjacent counties are eligible to apply only for SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs): Berkeley, Calhoun, Chesterfield, Clarendon, Colleton, Darlington, Dorchester, Lancaster, Lee and Sumter in South Carolina; Burke, Chatham, Columbia, Effingham, Elbert, Franklin, Habersham, Hart, Lincoln, Rabun, Richmond, Screven, and Stephens in Georgia; and Cleveland, Gaston, Henderson, Jackson, Macon, Mecklenburg, Polk, Rutherford and Transylvania in North Carolina.

With the changes to FEMA's Sequence of Delivery, survivors are now encouraged to simultaneously apply for FEMA grants and the SBA low-interest disaster loan assistance to fully recover. FEMA grants are intended to cover necessary expenses and serious needs not paid by insurance or other sources. The SBA disaster loan program is designed for your long-term recovery, to make you whole and get you back to your pre-disaster condition. Do not wait on the decision for a FEMA grant; apply online and receive additional disaster assistance information at sba.gov/disaster.

On October 15, 2024, it was announced that funds for the Disaster Loan Program have been fully expended. While no new loans can be issued until Congress appropriates additional funding, we remain committed to supporting disaster survivors. Applications will continue to be accepted and processed to ensure individuals and businesses are prepared to receive assistance once funding becomes available.

Applicants are encouraged to submit their loan applications promptly for review in anticipation of future funding.

Applicants may also call the SBA's Customer Service Center at (800) 659-2955 or send an email to [email protected] for more information on SBA disaster assistance. For people who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services.

The filing deadline to return applications for physical property damage is Nov. 29, 2024. The deadline to return economic injury applications is June 30, 2025.

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About the U.S. Small Business Administration

The U.S. Small Business Administration helps power the American dream of business ownership. As the only go-to resource and voice for small businesses backed by the strength of the federal government, the SBA empowers entrepreneurs and small business owners with the resources and support they need to start, grow or expand their businesses, or recover from a declared disaster. It delivers services through an extensive network of SBA field offices and partnerships with public and private organizations. To learn more, visit www.sba.gov.

Related programs: Disaster

Email [email protected]