Valley Family Seeks Help After Damaged Home Declared Livable
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WESLACO - Families needing help after last month's flooding can apply at three different FEMA centers in the Rio Grande Valley.
However, not everyone qualifies.
CHANNEL 5 NEWS spoke to one family that says FEMA turned them down.
They say their home is falling apart; mold is spreading and plywood is holding it together.
No one has lived in the house since the rains last month but according to the family, FEMA told them it is livable.
Now, the Rodriguez family is looking for help.
Rodriguez showed us her application for assistance rejections.
According to her, FEMA said the home is still livable.
She doesn’t understand how, as they aren’t even allowed to have the power on because rain left the breaker damaged.
"They told us to turn off everything, because once my dad turned it on, the smoke was coming out from under his house", says Rodriguez.
FEMA told us they can’t comment on individual cases but they recommend Rodriguez appeal the decision and that they have legal counselors to assist in the process.
Rodriguez says she won’t stop fighting to get her parents help.
The FEMA representative we spoke to says that when it comes to who gets assistance and who doesn't, it varies case by case.
For more information watch the video above.
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