Jan 17, 2008 9:39 pm US/Eastern
Turn Up The Heat With Home Energy Assistance
Reporting
Cindy Hsu
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
With the temperatures dropping as we enter the heart of winter, people are struggling to pay their home heating bills. Fortunately, emergency help is available for those in need.
Just like the deep freeze taking hold of the economy, winter's bite is taking hold of many trying to stay warm, like 74-year-old Brooklyn resident Maxine Simpson, who often finds herself firing up the burners. Simpson is legally blind though, which makes it even more risky for her.
"One time my blouse caught on fire," she tells CBS 2. "It is dangerous and I realize that it is very dangerous to have those jets on like that."
Simpson says she has no choice. Her home heating oil bills have been huge, running nearly $1,200 just last month at $3.43 a gallon. Last year she was paying a little over $2.00 a gallon.
Simpson turns off the heat to conserve oil and tries to keep the cold out with plastic over her windows and baseboards. As she struggles on a fixed income, she's even more concerned about the many children who are suffering, including her great-granddaughter Brianna who lives nearby.
"Sometimes they can't take a bath because the water's cold, so they have to heat just enough to wash her up in the morning for school," she says.
The encouraging news is that help is on the way for thousands of families who are part of the low-income home energy assistance program. Right now they receive up to $540 to help with heating bills, but President Bush just released $450 million of emergency money, and more than $80 million of that will go to New Yorkers who need it most.
"You can apply through your senior citizen center. You can call 311, the assistance number that is in New York City and Nassau and Suffolk counties, and some of the other places," says Sen. Charles Schumer.
The average amount of emergency money awarded is nearly $270 for the winter.
"It is easy to apply and now that we have this money, there are a lot of people who may have been turned down who can reapply," says Schumer.
To learn more about the emergency funding and how to apply for the Home Energy Assistance Program,
click here.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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