“My son was sleeping, ignoring his dad’s calls at first, thinking ... recovery has proven far slower than the actual storm. “Just the insurance. I think it’s getting the different quotes ...

But comics, I guess we’re just more apt to being honest.” During his own recovery, Ybarra said, he remembers thinking: How am I going to have fun again? How am I going to laugh again?

Another Somerset resident, Eric Cunnagin, had parked his brand-new car at his mom’s house, thinking it would be safe. “I didn’t have a place to actually protect it, so I brought it over here ...

In addition, he said, FEMA reimburses state and local governments for much of the cost of disaster response and recovery. Without that federal money, governments may need to raid their budgets for ...