Lose Your Job Due to Irene? Get Disaster Benefits

If you were out of work because of Tropical Storm Irene you may be eligible for a special form of aid to cover your lost wages.

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy on Tuesday announced that because President Barack Obama declared a major disaster in Connecticut after the storm, federal Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA) is available to residents of all eight counties who couldn’t work during or after the storm, including those who are self-employed.

Malloy announced that those eligible may include:

• "Individuals unable to reach their job because they must travel through the affected area and are prevented by doing so by the disaster."
• "Individuals who were to commence employment but were prevented by the disaster."
• "Individuals who became the major support for a household because of the death of the head of the household as a result of the disaster."
• "Individuals who cannot work because of an injury caused as a direct result of the disaster."

Although the DUA program is part of federal disaster assistance, the Connecticut Department of Labor administers it. Before an individual can be deemed eligible for DUA, labor department officials must determine if the individual is ineligible for regular unemployment insurance benefits under any state or federal laws.

Those who lost their jobs should file a claim with their local TeleBenefits line, which can be found in the blue pages of telephone directories, by dialing the state Infoline at 211, or on the Labor Department’s website.

The deadline for filing for DUA benefits is Oct. 6. Claims filed after that may be ineligible.

Editor's note: A version of this article previously was published by Rocky Hill Patch.