NATCHEZ &045; The U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development office in Natchez is taking applications from hurricane victims for apartments available throughout Mississippi and Alabama, said Cheryl Warren, agency manager for Adams, Jefferson, Franklin and Wilkinson counties.

Anyone displaced by Hurricane Katrina looking for long-term shelter may come to the office in Natchez and apply, Warren said.

&uot;Locally, not a whole lot is available,&uot; Warren said. &uot;But there are vacancies throughout Mississippi and Alabama.&uot;

The apartments are available for singles or families.

&uot;Eligibility includes being a U.S. citizen or qualified alien, having a FEMA claim number or verification that they lived in a hurricane-damaged parish or county,&uot; she said.

Participants in the multi-family housing units program will receive a letter of priority entitlement from the USDA office to present at the apartment complex to which they are directed.

Hurricane victims will not be required to pay the usual security and utility deposits and will be given a free 120-day stay.

Continued needs will be assessed at the end of the 120 days. The apartments are not furnished but have stoves and refrigerators.

The USDA program usually targets families with low and moderate incomes as well as elderly and disabled tenants.

The Natchez office is at 110 Northgate Road, Suite B, in the USDA Service Center. The best way to get to the center is to go U.S. 61 North, pass the Morgantown Road intersection on the left and make the first left turn after that onto Northgate Road, which leads to McDonald’s restaurant and to the service center straight ahead at the top of the hill.

The Natchez office is open from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Nick Walters, state director of the rural development agency for Mississippi, said taking a survey of vacant multi-family housing units was the first thing he did after the hurricane hit the Gulf Coast.

&uot;At about the same time, my counterpart in Alabama did a census of their vacant units,&uot; Walters said in a prepared statement. &uot;We came up with 1,700 vacancies in the two states.&uot;

Warren said only about a dozen families came to her office in Natchez to sign up for apartments on Monday, the day the program opened; but she expects the numbers to grow as more people learn about the opportunities.

&uot;If a person is looking for temporary shelter, less than 120 days, we suggest they try another source,&uot; Warren said. &uot;However, we’re not going to discourage anyone from coming.&uot;

Walters said in addition to apartments available in Mississippi and Alabama, others throughout the country may be open for the program.

&uot;We are working together to identify vacancies in other states so we can offer them to displaced families after we fill those in Mississippi and Alabama,&uot; he said.

Another USDA Rural Development program that will be available to hurricane victims is the Section 502 Rural Housing Loan Program, Warren said.

Loans from this program, now at 5.375 percent interest, are available for the purchase of existing properties or building new homes. Loan amounts depend on several factors, including income and credit ratings.

The Section 502 program is available only to those with dependable, verifiable income, Warren said.

Walters said his agency is pleased to offer help. &uot;USDA Rural Development is helping hurricane-affected families to take the first step in recovery by offering shelter, which is a basic need and a foundation for rebuilding,&uot; he said. &uot;We feel confident that charities, churches, businesses other government agencies and individuals will help provide the other necessities to these families as they recover. This is already happening all over Mississippi and the other hurricane-affected areas.&uot;