BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) – Officials announced Monday that FEMA has approved the state’s request to extend the Transitional Sheltering Assistance (TSA) program for flood victims until Friday, Nov. 18.

The program allows eligible flood victims from August’s historic flooding to stay in participating hotels temporarily if they cannot return home.

The TSA checkout date was originally set for Wednesday, Oct. 19. FEMA said it will notify applicants who are eligible for the extension about the new checkout date.

The state requested the extension because of lacking rental resources as well as the significant, widespread damage to homes.

The TSA program is meant to be a short-term housing solution to help displaced flood victims who are unable to return to their homes.

According to officials, FEMA pays the cost of the room directly to the hotel.

Officials said in the TSA program, there are currently 2,426 households checked into 261 hotels in 9 states.

Flood victims are reminded that the deadline for FEMA registration has been extended to Monday, Nov. 14 and the deadline to register for the state’s Shelter at Home Program has been pushed back to Friday, Oct. 21.

Anyone looking to register with FEMA for assistance or to report damages can register online at www.disasterassistance.gov.

They can also contact the Disaster Recovery Center at 1-800-621-3362 or TTY 1-800-462-7585. Individuals can register in-person at a Disaster Recovery Center.