9/12/2017

Gov. Scott Issues Updates on Hurricane Irma Response Efforts

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – This morning, Governor Rick Scott joined Adjutant General of Florida Maj. Gen. Michael Calhoun, Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry, and members of the National Guard on an aerial tour to assess damage from Hurricane Irma in Jacksonville. Over the past two days, Governor Scott has visited three shelters in Pensacola, Immokalee and Jacksonville. The Governor will continue to be in constant communication with state and local emergency management officials, city and county leaders, law enforcement and National Guard leaders, and utility officials as Hurricane Irma response continues.

EMERGENCY SUPPORT FUNCTIONS BY STATE EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAM

WATCHES AND WARNINGS

• Flood warnings and rip current risks are in effect      across the state. To see the most current advisories in your county,      click HERE.

SHELTERS

• More than 400 shelters are open throughout Florida with      a total population of more than 94,000 individuals. More than 80 special      needs shelters are open with a total population of more than 17,00      individuals. This number is being updated throughout the day. Visit floridadisaster.org/shelters/summary.aspx to find information on shelters in your area.
• To find information about available shelter information      by county, visit floridadisaster.org/shelters.
• FEMA is also hosting shelter information on its mobile      app which can be found at fema.gov/mobile-app.
• The state is fully committed to ensuring adequate food      resources are available to residents impacted by Hurricane Irma, and are      prioritizing these resources based on areas where landfall occurred first      and based upon urgency of need. These areas include: Monroe, Charlotte,      Collier, Lee, Sarasota, and shelters of last refuge. USDA Foods from the      state inventory (405,000 meals) as well as inventory from the North      Carolina Department of Agriculture (427,000 meals) are being staged for meal      preparation. The state is also working to ensure ice is available for      shelters, canteens, kitchens, and military support operations

LAW ENFORCEMENT

• An additional 24 FWC officers will be deploying and a      contingent of National Guard are arriving in Marathon in the Keys.
• More than 200 FWC officers statewide, including partner      agencies, are deployed in areas with resources such as trucks, coastal and      river patrol boats, ATVs and shallow draft boats to respond to critical      areas based on the storm’s path. FWC Special Operations Group (SOG)      officers, National Guard members and an Urban Search and Rescue Team began      rescue operations in the Keys yesterday.
• FWC has more than 500 law enforcement vessels deployed      throughout the state. FWC has three teams of 22 officers with 10 boats in      Jacksonville and Northeast Florida conducting search and rescue.
• FWC has sworn in more than 300 officers deployed from      Georgia, Mississippi, Delaware, South Carolina, Tennessee, Louisiana,      Arkansas, Pennsylvania, and Texas.
• The entire Florida Highway Patrol (FHP), approximately      1,700 troopers, is on 12-hour shifts, with the primary mission to assist      emergency response.
• The Florida Highway Patrol has 20 troopers dedicated to      fuel escorts from Port of Jacksonville, Port of Tampa, Port Everglades and      Port Canaveral to impacted areas as soon as ports reopen.
• FHP is providing security escorts to 44 tractor      trailers with relief supplies into Florida from the Georgia/Florida state      line to Miami.
• FHP is providing security escorts to 600 utility trucks      into Florida from the Georgia/Florida line into impacted areas of      Southwest Florida. In addition, FHP is providing a security escort to 11      Panama City utility vehicles.
• 60 FHP troopers have been deployed to assist the Polk      County Sheriff, 50 troopers have been deployed to assist the Collier      County Sheriff and 20 troopers have been deployed to assist St. Johns      County law enforcement.
• FHP is providing a security escort to seven AT&T      communication trucks to assist with communication coverage in Monroe      County.
• Despite closed state offices in Volusia Co., DHSMV      staff is at Orange City & Daytona Motorist Services offices to      offer Driver’s License and ID services.

MILITARY SUPPORT

• The Florida National Guard has conducted hundreds of      missions, including search and rescue and road and runway clearance across      the state, especially in the Keys. The Guard will begin transitions from      search and rescue missions to providing humanitarian assistance.
• The Florida National Guard is actively coordinating a      multi-service effort to conduct life-saving operations in the Florida      Keys, including providing critical capabilities to include road and runway      clearance to enable the delivery of life-saving supplies.
• Aerial assessments by the Florida National Guard will      continue across the state today.
• The full spectrum of U.S. military has supported      Hurricane Irma disaster relief efforts, which includes the aircraft      carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and the two amphibious ships USS Iwo Jima and      USS New York, which are positioned to begin providing assistance as      requested.

POWER AND UTILITIES

• The current power outage as of 9:00 a.m. is more than      5.6 million accounts. For a full breakdown, click HERE.
• Do not try to handle downed power lines. Contact your      local utility company to report it.

FUEL

• The Florida Highway Patrol has 20 troopers dedicated to      fuel escorts from Port of Jacksonville, Port of Tampa, Port Everglades and      Port Canaveral to impacted areas as soon as ports reopen.

• Port Everglades is open to traffic on the landside      terminals. Fuel trucks are actively filling and leaving the terminals to      refuel gas stations.  Port Everglades is expected to open to ships      later today.
• Port Canaveral has opened landside terminals for fuel      trucks to fill and deliver. Port Canaveral is expected to open to ships      today.

• Port of Tampa has landslide terminals open and fuel      trucks are actively filling and leaving the terminals to deliver gas to      stations. Tankers will begin delivery this evening, with at least seven      expected in the next 72 hours. Port Tampa is expected to open this      afternoon.
• This week, the Governor took the following actions to      expedite fuel delivery to gas stations:

• Directed the Florida Highway Patrol to escort fuel      resupply trucks to gas stations;
• Waived the tax on fuel entering the state;
• Gov. Scott and executive office staff have held daily      calls with all fuel supply stakeholders, including Florida Ports;
• Following the Governor’s request, Vice President Pence      announced that the federal government has waived the Jones Act upon      Governor Scott’s request, which waives additional rules and regulations to      allow more fuel to get to Florida fast. This waiver ensures that all      options are available to distribute fuel to Florida. The last Jones Act      waiver was issued in December 2012, for petroleum products to be delivered      for relief assistance in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.
• Following the Governor’s request, the Environmental      Protection Agency (EPA) has approved an emergency fuel waiver which allows      more fuel to quickly enter the state. For more information, please click HERE.
• Requested ten states to join Florida in waiving weight      and driver restrictions to move goods more quickly into the state,      including fuel.

TRANSPORTATION & PUBLIC WORKS

• The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT)      has completed damage assessments on major highways. Every interstate and      turnpike is open for Floridians, however, everyone should continue to      listen to local officials on when to return home.
• At this point, FDOT damage assessment teams and debris      removal crews are working on assessing damage on US 1 south in the Keys.      No residents or visitors are permitted into the area until an assessment      of damage on roadways and bridges is complete. Follow the direction      of local officials regarding entrance into Monroe County.
• FDOT continues to coordinate with Google’s emergency      response team to “close” damaged roads in Google Maps in real time      following damage assessments.

• FDOT’s cut and toss crews are continuing to work with      utility crews across the state to clear road debris so power can be      restored quickly.
• Bridge inspections and debris clearance are ongoing      throughout the state.
• FDOT is coordinating with other states to deploy      additional resources to Florida. A number of other states have offered      assistance. Maryland, Missouri and Delaware are currently deploying crews      to Florida. FDOT continues to coordinate with other states.
• Around the state, FDOT has 13 traffic management      centers where hundreds of DOT workers are monitoring traffic cameras 24/7.      Real-time traffic information is available at www.FL511.com
• Governor Scott directed the Florida Department of      Transportation (FDOT) to suspend tolls across the entire State of Florida      in preparation for Hurricane Irma. Tolls remain suspended and immediate      recovery efforts continue.
• FDOT is coordinating with county emergency operations      centers directly to coordinate any necessary response needs and actions,      including damage assessments and road and bridge closures.

RECOVERY BRANCH

• An aggressive recovery effort is ongoing, working with      FEMA to identify and activate federal grant programs that can benefit      Floridians and their communities.
• Following Governor Rick Scott’s request a major      disaster declaration by President Donald Trump. Individual Assistance is      available for Broward, Charlotte, Clay, Collier, Duval, Flagler,      Hillsborough, Lee, Manatee, Miami-Dade, Monroe, Palm Beach, Pinellas,      Putnam, Sarasota and St. John counties, Emergency Protective Measures      (Category A and Category B) funded through the Federal Public Assistance      Program is available for all 67 counties.

DISASTER ASSISTANCE

• Residents who sustained losses in the nine declared      counties can apply for assistance by registering online at www.DisasterAssistance.gov.      Residents who suffered damages from the storm may register now, and if      their county is later included in the declaration, the application will be      processed automatically.
• Governor Scott will continue to work with President      Trump and FEMA to approve more funding to additional communities affected      by the storm.
• Residents are also encouraged to download the FEMA App      to begin the registration process. Simply click on Disaster      Resources.
• If you do not have access to the internet, you may      register by calling 1-800-621-3362 (FEMA) or 1-800-462-7585 (TTY); if you      use 711 Relay or Video Relay Service call 1-800-621-3362.
• The toll-free telephone numbers will operate from 7:00      a.m. to 10:00 p.m. (local time) seven days a week until further notice.

INSURANCE

• Floridians affected by the storm must now begin the      process of surveying damages to their property and belongings. If you need      help finding your Florida’s property insurance company’s website and      contact information, click HERE.      For a list of licensed insurance agents in Florida, click HERE.
• Consumers with questions about their policies and those      who need help filing a claim should call the CFO’s free Insurance Consumer      Helpline at 1-877-693-5236.
• It is important to document all damaged property and      belongings. A free smartphone app developed by the National Association of      Insurance Commissioners called “MyHome Scr.APP.book” is available to assist      with photo documentation.
• OIR has updated its “Hurricane Season Resources” webpage, which contains links to information provided      by the Governor, Chief Financial Officer, Attorney General, Commissioner      of Agriculture, Federal Emergency Management Agency’s National Flood      Insurance Program, and contact information for Florida’s property      insurers.

SCHOOL CLOSURES

• Please visit www.fldoe.org/irma/ to      view all school closures.

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

• More than 140 Florida State Parks remain closed, and 20      have been opened for day-use only. Park service staff have formed strike      teams to respond to impacted parks and re-open them as quickly as      possible. A full list of closures can be found at https://floridastateparks.org/content/storm-information
• DEP has mobilized 12 Hazardous Assessment and Response      Teams in coordination with the EPA and the U.S. Coast Guard to assess      hazardous waste facilities and respond to pollution incidents and other      storm impacts.
• DEP continues to coordinate with GIS and subject matter      experts to map priority sites for preliminary damage assessments, and with      FDOT to assure roads are cleared to priority sites to expedite      assessments.
• DEP is coordinating with US Army Corps of Engineers,      FDOT, US Coast Guard, FWC, and FEMA on debris removal statewide.
• DEP is mobilizing Beach Response Teams and      participating with assistance of USACE in efforts to expedite recovery of      Florida beaches.
• DEP has issued an emergency order to ensure recovery      efforts are not hampered or delayed. DEP has expanded that order for power      plants to cover the entire state to assist any facility recovering from      the storm and a new order to waive certain rules for fuel facilities      impacted by the storm statewide. Both orders apply only to impacted      facilities and have provisions to guard the environment while assisting in      quick recovery of critical infrastructure.
• DEP has established a mutual aid system to coordinate      responses between utilities, the department, and other responders. This      system is active and continues to coordinate and respond to the needs of      drinking and waste water facilities throughout Florida.
• DEP is working with FWC, EPA, and the U.S. Coast Guard      to mitigate pollutants from submerged vessels.

LAKE OKEECHOBEE

• The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers continues to closely      monitor the lake level, which is currently at 14.46 feet.
• The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has deemed      the lake infrastructure as safe and will continue to monitor.

BUSINESS, INDUSTRY, & ECONOMIC STABILIZATION

• The Florida Virtual Business Emergency Operations      Center business damage assessment surveying tool has been activated for      businesses to report damages resulting from Hurricane Irma. Businesses are      encouraged to visit http://flvbeoc.org/index.php. Click on Hurricane Irma.
• A private sector hotline is available at (850) 410-1403      to respond to calls from businesses and private sector support      organizations.
• The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity      (DEO) is readying the Disaster Unemployment Assistance Program to      provide temporary income support to eligible individuals in counties      approved for FEMA Individual Assistance.
• The state is working to identify the “open/close”      status of businesses. This information is being posted to the SERT      Tropical Storm Irma web page: http://www.floridadisaster.org/info/ .
• The Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association members      are working directly with local Salvation Army Staff to provide meals for      shelter evacuees.
• The Florida Retail Federation is assisting in      coordinating information to Florida Retailers regarding restocking of      emergency supplies, readying mobile pharmacies, and the transportation of      fuel.
• The Florida Small Business Development Center Network      is working with federal officials to identify additional staffing and      financial resources to support business response activities.
• The Florida Chamber of Commerce is coordinating with      their members and local chambers to determine post-storm recovery needs      and identifying resources available to be sent to the affected areas.