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Unemployment claims rise in most Virginia counties hit by Helene

A group of people stands outside a house observing storm damage. There is significant debris and a car that has been pushed under a house.
Steve Helber
/
AP
Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, lvisits areas impacted by Hurricane Helene in Damascus, Va., Thursday Oct. 3, 2024.

Affected residents have until Dec. 1 to apply for disaster assistance.

Hurricane Helene’s impact on unemployment claims in Virginia is becoming clear.

Each Thursday, the Virginia Employment Commission releases statewide jobless data, while Virginia Works, the commonwealth’s workforce development agency, issues more granular data about unemployment claims by county.

During the week ending Oct. 5, 3,025 unemployment insurance claims were filed. That’s 27.6% higher than the previous week's 2,371 claims and more than twice as high as the same week in 2023, according to Virginia Works.

Helene damaged hundreds of homes across Southwest Virginia, where two people have been confirmed dead in connection to the storm. Entire coastal communities farther south in the region were swept away, and first responders conducted water rescues in Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas.

A chart showing unemployment claims increasing in 14 of 16 Virginia localities affected by Hurricane Helene.
Virginia Employment Commission/Virginia Works

The Virginia Employment Commission offers Disaster Unemployment Assistance to those who can’t work or had their hours reduced due to the hurricane.

The temporary financial relief is available for residents of Bedford, Bland, Carroll, Giles, Grayson, Pittsylvania, Russell, Smyth, Tazewell, Washington, Wythe, Wise, Montgomery and Pulaski counties, as well as the cities of Galax and Radford. Unemployment claims increased in all but two of the 16 localities.

The VEC will remain open on Columbus Day/Yorktown Victory Day on Monday, with representatives available to answer customer calls and provide assistance on the ground in Damascus and Independence. VEC representatives can be reached at (866) 832-2363.

Eligible residents of those localities have until Dec. 1 to apply for assistance through VEC.

VPM News is the staff byline for articles and podcasts written and produced by multiple reporters and editors.