Rooms for those displaced by Hurricane Florence have been in short supply at Wilmington area hotels and short-term lodgings.

More space, however, could open up this month, said Connie Nelson, spokeswoman with the Wilmington and Beaches Convention & Visitors Bureau.

"Overall, the availability has been limited as rooms filled pre-storm with evacuees and relief workers that arrived prior to the storm. Short-term lodging appears to be more available as we moved into October," Nelson said in an email.

That's because relief workers and volunteers in Wilmington in some cases are finishing up their work, and some displaced residents are starting to be able to return to their homes, Nelson said.

"Also, if a property sustained damage to some rooms they will reopen as repairs are made," Nelson said.

As part of the Wilmington CVB’s Crisis Communication efforts, the organization contacted lodging properties, both before and after the storm, to provide the New Hanover County Emergency Management Office with accommodations updates as needed.

“The NHC Emergency Management Office works with organizations that aid displaced residents to find accommodations/housing,” Nelson said.

The frequency of the Wilmington CVB’s updates depends “on the nature of the storm,” she said, adding that up until last week, the organization provided daily updates on the availability lists. This week, it is providing the office with two updates.

“This is not a new role, it is something we do when we are impacted by a named storm," she said.

At least four area hotels were fully booked this week. One had been closed due to the hurricane.

Extended Stay America Hotel Wilmington-New Centre Drive has no availability. The hotel is still closed because of Florence, a sales representative with Extended Stay America said. The next available room at the hotel, 4929 New Centre Drive, in Wilmington, would be open Nov. 1, according to the hotel's records Tuesday morning. 

The Hotel Ballast, 301 N. Water St., in downtown Wilmington was sold out Tuesday, a sales representative said. The representative was serving some individuals that have stayed there since the storm, adding "that number is dwindling." 

Hotel Ballast is currently housing groups displaced from other venues and transient guests, the official said. And because of so many intermittent sold-out dates, the length of stay varies at the hotel.

Melissa Fallis, director of sales and marketing for Embassy Suites by Hilton Wilmington Riverfront, said Tuesday that the hotel is "very very limited on availability."

Embassy Suites, 9 Estell Lee Place in downtown Wilmington, is serving long-term guests, residents of the area that have been displaced, and disaster relief groups. 

At this time extended stays are limited and with some conventions coming into town, the hotel could remain packed through the first two weeks of November, Fallis said.

Leann Pierce, owner of Drifter's Reef Hotel, said that her hotel in Carolina Beach was booked even before the storm hit. Drifter's Reef, 701 N. Lake Park Blvd., was first occupied by Duke Energy, which had reserved rooms at the hotel before the hurricane hit.

The Red Cross then rented all of the hotel's 62 rooms Sept. 25, she said, adding that the hotel is fully booked until Oct. 16.

Pierce has owned Drifter's Reef for about 25 years and has seen similar situations at the establishment with other named storms like Fran in September 1996. Pierce said the bookings benefit her business, but the impacts of of a hurricane are never a good thing for the area.

“There is just such a demand for rooms right now,” she added.

And the Sleep Inn and Mainstay Suites at 5229 Market St. did not have any availability this week as of Tuesday morning, a representative there said. The next open date for a room was Oct. 14, the official said. But that could change, and the hotel can't guarantee consecutive-night stays.

The representative said that the hotel has been serving those displaced by Hurricane Florence, some looking to book as many as 15 days, and is on the list for FEMA's Transitional Sheltering Assistance (TSA) program.

It's one of only two hotels in Wilmington on FEMA's list for the program. The Quality Inn, 4926 Market St., is also on the list, along with two other properties in Shallotte and one in Wallace.

TSA is a sheltering option that uses participating hotels and motels to help fill the gap until those displaced can identify short- or long-term housing solutions, according to a FEMA news release about the program.

TSA is currently available to those eligible with a primary residence in one of nine designated counties, including New Hanover, Pender and Brunswick counties.

People who "do not have the option to return home and are unable to have their housing needs met through insurance, congregate shelters or rental assistance provided by FEMA or another agency (federal, state or voluntary) may be eligible for TSA," stated the release.

According to the release, "FEMA provides rental assistance, home repair assistance and other forms of housing to help eligible survivors transition from TSA to a short or long-term housing option."