WASHINGTON, Sept. 26, 2018 — Victims of Hurricane Florence in South Carolina can get legal assistance by calling a hotline set up by a partnership among the Disaster Legal Services Program of the American Bar Association Young Lawyers Division (ABA YLD), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), South Carolina Bar Association Young Lawyers Division and South Carolina Legal Services.
To access help from volunteer lawyers, disaster victims should call 877-797-2227, ext. 120 or 803-576-3815, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET Monday through Friday (messages can be left after hours). When connected, callers should identify that they are seeking disaster-related legal assistance and give brief details of the assistance needed. Individuals who qualify for assistance are then matched with lawyers who have volunteered to provide legal assistance.
Disaster-related legal issues include landlord/tenant problems, insurance claims, FEMA claims and consumer issues such as contractor fraud.
Since September 2007, the ABA YLD has responded to more than 178 declared disasters in 44 states and four U.S. territories. In the last year, hundreds of lawyers volunteered to provide legal assistance to those affected by hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria; as well as wildfires in the West and other natural disasters.
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