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ALEXANDRIA, Va. (Oct. 6, 2017) – Credit unions in the path of Tropical Storm Nate are being advised to take precautions as the storm nears the Gulf Coasts of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida, the National Credit Union Administration said today.

Currently a tropical storm with winds of up to 50 miles an hour, Nate is projected to reach hurricane strength over the weekend, with wind speeds climbing to 75 miles an hour, and make landfall late Saturday or early Sunday. The storm’s current path indicates it could reach land somewhere east of New Orleans.

The NCUA is tracking this storm closely, and the agency will monitor the conditions of credit unions in its path. Credit unions are encouraged to keep in contact with their examiners, and the agency will be ready to assist credit unions with maintaining or restoring operations, if necessary. The agency maintains a hurricane and disaster information page on its website with more material on preparedness and staying safe.

Credit union members with questions may contact the NCUA’s Consumer Assistance Center at 800.755.1030 Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Eastern. The NCUA’s Office of Small Credit Union Initiatives can provide urgent needs grants (opens new window) of up to $7,500 to low-income credit unions that experience sudden costs to restore operations interrupted by the storm. Agency examiners can assist credit unions that wish to apply for those grants.

The National Hurricane Center has an information page on Tropical Storm Nate (opens new window), and the Federal Department of Homeland Security has an information page on being prepared for hurricanes (opens new window).

Credit union member deposits remain protected by the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund. Administered by the NCUA, the Share Insurance Fund insures individual accounts up to $250,000, and a member’s interest in all joint accounts combined is insured up to $250,000. The Share Insurance Fund separately protects IRA and KEOGH retirement accounts up to $250,000. The Share Insurance Fund has the backing of the full faith and credit of the United States. Members with questions about their insurance coverage can find information online at the Share Insurance Coverage (opens new window) page of the NCUA’s MyCreditUnion.gov (opens new window) website.