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Communications
Financial Recovery Tool Kit
New Tool Kit Aids Flood Victims in Financial Recovery
A free online resource is available to help people get their finances back in order after a flood.
Recovery After Disaster: The Family Financial Toolkit is a free resource developed in partnership by the North Dakota State University Extension Service and University of Minnesota Extension. The toolkit is designed to assist people who have experienced a disaster in pulling the financial pieces of their life back together.
It's available at http://www.extension.umn.edu/family/tough-times/disaster-recovery/family-financial-toolkit."At no time in history has there been such a far-reaching occurrence of significant natural disasters," says Burleigh County Extension Agent Megan Myrdal. "The flooding of the Missouri River has wreaked havoc on the financial well-being of those in its path. Family financial recovery is a long-term process, and decisions made at the time of the disaster affect the financial well-being of survivors for a lifetime."
This hands-on tool kit can help flood victims learn key strategies for financial recovery, identify helpful resources, and explore options.
"There are no easy fixes and guarantees, but there are tools available that will help flood survivors along the road to financial recovery," says Vanessa Hoines, Morton County Extension Agent.
The tool kit includes:
• 10 key strategies disaster survivors should know as they begin to work on their financial recovery
• Checklists on what to do in the first hours and days after the disaster when you return to your property, plus key financial issues and resources related to the cleanup phase of the recovery process
• Worksheets to help you assess your financial situation and make your plan for long-term recovery
• Housing assessment tools to use as you work on your short- and long-term housing needs
• A section to help you understand that things never will be the same as before the flood, but eventually you will come to a "new normal"
• Specific disaster resources for North Dakota families
"Just as you do not use all the tools in your tool kit on any one project, flood survivors can pick and choose individual units, worksheets or tools to use, depending on their situation," Hoines says.
Myrdal adds, "It is important to remember to not try to do too much at one time, and to find people who can help you complete key steps toward your recovery. Friends and loved ones can assist flood victims in both accessing the tool kit and working with them on the financial recovery strategies and tools."
For more information visit www.ag.ndsu.edu/flood
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