Gov. Ron DeSantis announced that the state of Florida has submitted a major disaster declaration to the Trump administration following Hurricane Isaias while speaking at a press conference in Milton this week.
"This is a step that we need to do in order to unlock support from FEMA [Federal Emergency Management Agency]," DeSantis said. "And so our request includes public assistance for 15 Florida counties, obviously including the ones here in Northwest Florida, which, if approved, will provide federal funding to help local governments recover eligible disaster-related costs and to restore essential services."
Gov. DeSantis added the declaration would help with debris removal from the Category 2 hurricane. Isaias struck the Panhandle near Destin on Friday evening.
"We had a lot of trees down, of course, in this storm, and maybe even a higher percentage than in other storms that we've dealt with," DeSantis said, crediting the Florida Department of Transportation for helping clear state roads and bridges storm damage.
"I know the counties have debris contracts; they've got contractors out there," DeSantis said. "[If] this request is approved by the Trump administration, that would entitle the state and the locals to reimbursement of 75% of the costs - half of the remaining 25% is borne by the county or the city, and then the other half of that 25% is borne by the state. We have traditionally received that over the years."
In addition, Gov. DeSantis called for individual FEMA assistance for Bay, Escambia, Gulf, Holmes, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, Walton, and Washington counties. Different from public funding, individual assistance may include temporary housing, basic home repairs, essential personal property, and other necessary disaster-related expenses for eligible residents.
"That provides support from FEMA directly to Floridians whose homes and property were damaged by the storm," DeSantis said. "Now, these disaster declarations are not automatic. The state has to document the extent of the damage, identify unmet needs, and demonstrate the impacts of the storm were in fact severe."
DeSantis noted Florida has 30 days to submit a request under the federal declaration.
"Our folks worked very hard with the locals to get the damage documented as quickly as possible," DeSantis commented. "There were a lot of people that worked hard on this here in Santa Rosa County and the surrounding counties, and so that request was submitted not 30 days after landfall, but less than a week after landfall, which did require a lot of effort."
The governor also announced a partnership with Emergency RVs to provide temporary housing for residents impacted by the storm.
"This initiative will prioritize eligible residents whose homes sustained the most significant damage, providing a safe place to stay while they work to rebuild and recover," DeSantis said.
FDOT Commissioner Jared W. Perdue, P.E., thanked DeSantis and state officials for its hurricane response.
"Over the last week, state and local partners have worked to clear debris, reopen roadways, establish the points of distribution to provide essential supplies, coordinate feeding operations for survivors and responders, and also support our utility partners in the restoration of power in all the affected communities, " Perdue said. "We've been hard at work doing that. It's going to continue until it's done."
