TL;DR: Tennesseans with uninsured Winter Storm Fern losses have until Wednesday, June 10 to file for FEMA grants and U.S. Small Business Administration disaster loans.

Deadline Is Wednesday, June 10

Tennesseans affected by January's Winter Storm Fern have until Wednesday, June 10 to apply for FEMA assistance and U.S. Small Business Administration disaster loans, according to Main Street Media of Tennessee.

The report, published June 7, 2026, describes the cutoff as the final chance to start a new request for help tied to the January winter storm. It applies to both the FEMA grant process and the separate SBA disaster-loan process.

Households that miss the start of that window cannot open a fresh file after June 10. Those who have already registered keep different rights after the date passes.

To date, FEMA has approved $57,453,096.16 in disaster assistance for 60,212 households, according to the same report. That total shows the scale of approved help before the filing period closes.

Who Can Still File in Tennessee

FEMA assistance is available to homeowners and renters, including students, with uninsured losses from the winter storm, according to Main Street Media of Tennessee.

Eligibility depends on location and loss type. The applicant must have an uninsured loss linked to Winter Storm Fern and live in one of the designated counties.

Students who rent are explicitly included. Owners and renters are treated under the same county-based access rule.

The key test is uninsured loss. Help is aimed at needs that insurance does not cover, not at reimbursing costs already paid by another source.

The 29 Counties Named

Assistance is limited to 29 Tennessee counties named in the announcement.

The counties are Benton, Carroll, Cheatham, Chester, Clay, Davidson, Decatur, Dickson, Dyer, Fayette, Hardeman, Hardin, Henderson, Hickman, Lewis, Macon, Madison, Maury, McNairy, Montgomery, Perry, Robertson, Rutherford, Shelby, Sumner, Trousdale, Wayne, Williamson and Wilson, according to Main Street Media of Tennessee.

Households outside that list are not covered by this particular FEMA access notice. Households inside the list still must show a storm-related uninsured loss.

Families that evacuated, stayed with relatives, or moved to temporary quarters should check their county against the list before June 10. A prior address in a named county during the January storm period matters for sorting eligibility.

Renters should not assume landlords have filed for them. Each household files its own request based on its own losses.

What FEMA Grants Can Cover

FEMA disaster assistance may include grants to help with temporary housing expenses, basic home repairs or other essential disaster-related needs that are not covered by insurance, including damage to personal property from the disaster, according to Main Street Media of Tennessee.

That means short-term shelter costs, limited work to make a home livable again, and replacement of essential personal property can fall within the program when insurance does not pay.

Other assistance may include medical, dental, transportation or funeral expenses for those who sustained injury, illness or death of a loved one due to the storm, according to the same report.

Medical and dental help is tied to storm-caused injury or illness. Transportation help is tied to storm effects. Funeral help is tied to a death of a loved one due to the storm.

Applicants should list every category that applies rather than filing for housing alone. A household with both home damage and a storm injury should document both tracks in the same filing period.

SBA Disaster Loans Are On the Same Clock

The June 10 date is also the last day to seek a U.S. Small Business Administration disaster loan tied to Winter Storm Fern, according to Main Street Media of Tennessee.

FEMA grants and SBA loans are different tools with a shared filing cutoff in this notice. Grants do not require repayment under the described structure, while SBA disaster loans are loan applications handled through the SBA system.

Homeowners, renters, businesses and nonprofits often look at SBA disaster loans for repair or replacement costs beyond what grants address. The Tennessee notice groups both programs under the same Wednesday deadline.

A household should not wait for a FEMA decision before considering the loan track. Both tracks close June 10 for new applicants.

Preparedness guidance for loan files is practical: gather identification, proof of residence in a named county, insurance letters, repair estimates, and photos of damage before starting the application. Complete files move faster than partial files.

Five Ways to Apply Before the Cutoff

Survivors can apply for FEMA assistance in five ways listed in the announcement.

They can visit DisasterAssistance.gov, call 800-621-FEMA (3362), use the FEMA app, or visit a Disaster Recovery Center in person, according to Main Street Media of Tennessee. No appointment is needed for an in-person visit.

Callers who use a relay service, captioned telephone or other service are asked to give FEMA the number for that service. That step helps staff return the call through the correct relay path.

Online filers should use DisasterAssistance.gov. Mobile filers can use the FEMA app. Phone filers can call 800-621-FEMA, which is 800-621-3362.

In-person help does not require an appointment, but time is short because center hours are ending. Check location information early and bring identification, proof of address, insurance documents, and damage photos.

Recovery Centers Closed June 6

All Disaster Recovery Centers are scheduled to cease operations at the close of business on Saturday, June 6, according to Main Street Media of Tennessee.

That closure happened before the June 10 application deadline. After Saturday evening, in-person help at those centers is no longer listed as an option.

To find center locations before they close, applicants were directed to go to fema.gov/drc or text "DRC" and a ZIP Code to 43362, according to the same report.

Households that still need face-to-face help should shift to the remaining channels: the website, the phone line, and the app. Do not delay waiting for a center to reopen.

For family readiness, save confirmation numbers, take screenshots of online submissions, and keep a paper copy of every upload. If phone lines are busy near the deadline, the online portal and app provide alternate paths on the same clock.

What Happens After June 10

After the June 10 application deadline, survivors who have already registered with FEMA can continue submitting paperwork, filing appeals and updating their applications through their FEMA account, according to Main Street Media of Tennessee.

The distinction is important. The deadline stops new registrations. It does not stop existing cases from moving forward.

Registered survivors can still send supporting documents. They can still file an appeal if they disagree with a decision. They can still update contact details, housing status, or insurance information through their FEMA account.

Unregistered households gain none of those post-deadline rights. Filing by June 10 preserves the ability to correct, supplement, and appeal later.

Separate Tax Deadline Ran to June 8

A separate relief window for taxes tied to the same storm system closed just before the FEMA window, according to Meyka.

Winter Storm Fern struck on January 23, 2026, and triggered a federal disaster declaration from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, according to Meyka. The IRS and Mississippi Department of Revenue responded by extending tax deadlines from April 15 to June 8 for affected taxpayers.

Taxpayers in all 82 Mississippi counties and eligible Tennessee areas could file individual income tax returns, corporate returns, and quarterly payments without penalties if filed by the deadline, according to the same report.

The IRS will abate late filing and late payment penalties for affected taxpayers if they file by June 8, according to Meyka. That tax relief is separate from FEMA housing aid and SBA disaster loans, but it shows how January storm declarations created overlapping June cutoffs for household finances.

Families handling both tracks should keep tax filings and disaster-aid filings in separate folders. Use the tax transcript and proof of loss for different purposes and do not mix appeal letters with tax returns.

Hidden Home Hazards Remain After Fern

The filing deadline arrives while physical hazards from the ice storm persist in some neighborhoods.

Four months after Winter Storm Fern swept through Nashville, many homeowners assume the danger is long gone, according to a separate Main Street Media of Tennessee report on post-storm tree risk.

At its peak, more than 230,000 Nashville Electric Service customers lost power, making it one of the largest outage events in the utility's history, according to that report. For many longtime residents, Fern was the most significant ice storm to hit Nashville since the historic 1994 ice storm.

Tanner Smith, owner of Smith Works Tree Service and Land Management, said trees can carry hidden structural damage and that his crew was still getting many calls related to storm damage four months later, according to the same report.

Smith said trees held ice for days and kept breaking even after the storm passed. He warned that storm-damaged trees are often under pressure and urged caution around significant damage work.

Homeowners should watch for hanging limbs, new cracks in the trunk, trees leaning more than before, or visible bark separation. Document new failures with dates and photos, since that record supports both safety planning and any pending assistance paperwork.

Household Checklist for the Final Days

Use the remaining time to file, not to research options.

Confirm county eligibility against the 29-county list. List all uninsured needs: shelter, basic repairs, personal property, plus any medical, dental, transportation or funeral costs tied to injury, illness or death from the storm.

Choose one filing channel now: DisasterAssistance.gov, 800-621-3362, the FEMA app, or, before its June 6 close, a Disaster Recovery Center with location help at fema.gov/drc or by texting DRC plus ZIP to 43362. Keep relay numbers ready if you use relay service.

File the SBA loan request separately by June 10 if you plan to seek one. After filing, use your FEMA account to track paperwork, appeals and updates.

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