Senator Rick Scott (R-FL) is calling upon Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and the upper chamber of the Legislative Branch to immediately reconvene following the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. The former Florida governor believes the Senate should return to Capitol Hill once the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and state and local officials determine the funding necessary to properly deal with the humanitarian crisis.
There have been 121 confirmed deaths from the storm and its effects, according to NBC News. That number could rise.
Sen. Scott is also taking requests for those in need of FEMA, the Small Business Administration (SBA), and other federal organizations to contact his office at this link here.
“Since Category 4 Hurricane Helene made its devastating landfall in the Big Bend and caused massive and destructive storm surge along hundreds of miles of Florida’s Gulf Coast, I have been traveling to impacted communities to survey damage and coordinate resources between the local, state and federal governments,” said Sen. Scott. “What I have seen, from the catastrophic damage in Cedar Key, to the massive destruction caused by unprecedented storm surge in communities from Fort Myers Beach to Siesta Key and Anna Maria Island and north to Pinellas, Pasco and Hernando counties is heartbreaking. News reports of the devastation in Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and other communities impacted by Hurricane Helene are also devastating.”
Furthermore, Sen. Scott discussed the Sunshine State’s ability to rise above trials and tribulations, but an all-government response will be necessary not only for Florida but all the states affected by the storm. For instance, 40 deaths have been reported in Buncombe County, North Carolina, alone.
“Floridians are resilient, but the response and recovery from this storm demands the full and immediate support of government at every level to get families and businesses back to normal,” Scott stated. “While I know from my experience with previous hurricanes that FEMA and SBA damage assessments take time, I am today urging Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to immediately reconvene the U.S. Senate when those assessments are completed so that we can pass the clean supplemental disaster funding bill and other disaster relief legislation, like my Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act, needed to ensure the full recovery of families in all impacted communities.”
Finally, the junior Florida senator confirmed that while the state awaits help from the federal government, there is still work to be done.
