The Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM) today highlighted recovery efforts spearheaded by the State in the six months since Hurricane Ian made landfall. The Division has cut through red tape and obligated nearly $800M during the 6-months post-landfall of Hurricane Ian, which has generated an estimated $1.2B in resilience funding – the most FDEM has obligated and secured in this time frame before and the most ever secured in such a short time following a disaster for any state managed hurricane response.
“In just six short months, FDEM has accomplished more than we ever have when we look at previous disaster responses,” said FDEM Executive Director Kevin Guthrie. “I want to thank Governor Ron DeSantis for his steadfast leadership and support of FDEM as well as our staff who have been working around the clock for over 180 days.”
Hurricane Ian made landfall on September 28, 2022 as a dangerous high-end Category 4 storm in Lee and Charlotte Counties, bringing strong winds, heavy rainfall and significant storm surge before crossing over the state. In preparation for the storm, the Division coordinated closely with Governor DeSantis to issue an Executive Order five days prior to landfall, allowing for the Division to activate the State Emergency Response Team quickly and for the Division to coordinate pre-staging resources, such as generators, pumps, and Urban Search & Rescue Teams near the potential impact areas.
In the immediate response to Hurricane Ian, the Division coordinated resources through four key areas:
- Emergency Services –In coordination with the Logistics Section and the Florida National Guard, Air Operations dropped critical supplies to Sanibel, Captiva and Pine Islands and clocked over 457 flight hours, while also evacuating 42 pets and rescuing others from those inaccessible areas. Law Enforcement, Fire Rescue and Search and Rescue (SAR) operations were supported statewide as they rescued and evacuated over 2,000 residents in impacted areas.
- Infrastructure –Within two days of landfall, over 43,000 utility restoration personnel were responding in Florida, with over 30 states providing support. Thanks to the continuous work of these restoration personnel, over 2 million utility accounts had power within four days of landfall.
- Human Services –The Human Services Branch supported the needs of survivors through the distribution of over 4 million hot meals, over 15 million Meals Ready to Eat (MREs), over 500,000 food boxes and over 2 million cleanup/hygiene kits. This is the most food and water delivered to impacted citizens in the aftermath of any disaster in the Southeast since 2017.
- Logistics –Before, during and after landfall, the Division received over 7,300 resource requests to provide state support in impacted areas. Within 48 hours after landfall, 20 county Points of Distribution (PODs) were operational, with another 8 coming online in 72 hours. These PODs were supported by four Logistical Staging Areas (LSAs) to deliver food, water, generators, pumps and other sanitation and communications equipment in record time. During Ian and subsequent Hurricane Nicole, the Division distributed over 51 million bottles of water, 14 million meals and 308,000 bags of ice. The Division operated nine state-supported base camps that supported nearly 6,000 emergency responders addressing the impacts of Hurricane Ian. The State of Florida also coordinated resources and support from 25 states across the nation, which was the most highly coordinated and efficient Emergency Mutual Aid response ever seen for a disaster in the nation.
Ongoing Hurricane Ian recovery efforts include:
Debris Removal –
FDEM worked closely with the Fish and Wildlife Commission (FWC), the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), the Coast Guard, and local governments to identify and remove vessels and other debris from waterways and upland private and commercial properties. As of today, more than 1-Million cubic yards of upland debris and nearly 530,000 cubic yards of wet debris has been removed by FDEM and its partners. This includes nearly 4,000 white goods, 337,000 cubic yards of construction debris, and 281,000 cubic yards of vegetative debris.
In the immediate aftermath of the storm, the State of Florida and FEMA reached an agreement to allow for the waiver of some requirements for debris removal on private and commercial properties, including damaged slabs on private property. Additionally, the state engaged the use of satellite imagery and other technology platforms to expedite damage assessments, a process that FEMA typically does by going door to door to physically inspect structures.
The first-of-its-kind State Debris Cleanup Program was designed to assist Hurricane Ian survivors with the removal of displaced and abandoned titled property. Residents can still request the removal of debris by visiting IanDebrisCleanup.com by March 29, 2023 to report the presence of debris.
Housing –
To supplement FEMA’s temporary housing solution and expedite the recovery process, FDEM initiated the first ever State Led Non-Congregate Sheltering Program to provide trailers and recreational vehicles to impacted Floridians who may not be eligible for FEMA’s Direct Temporary Housing Program. To date, 585 households have received travel trailers through this program.
The state has also led the Sheltering in Home for Recovery Continuation Program, which provides temporary repairs to homes from Hurricane Ian damage with the support of volunteer organizations and a partnership with Home Depot. Through this program, work orders have been issued to volunteer organizations for 182 homes totaling more than $1.3 million.
Fundraising –
The Florida Disaster Fund is the state’s private fund overseen by Volunteer Florida that continues to provide financial assistance to communities and support response and recovery activities, spearheaded by First Lady Casey DeSantis. To contribute, please visit www.FloridaDisasterFund.org or text DISASTER to 20222. Donations to the Florida Disaster Fund are made to the Volunteer Florida Foundation, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, and are tax-deductible.
