tampa, florida — Some areas of Florida's Gulf Coast, central and eastern Florida are back in recovery mode after Hurricane Milton made landfall late Wednesday night. Although the damage was widespread, the damage was not as severe as many had feared, as the Milton did not make landfall in Tampa Bay.
Throughout the week leading up to Milton's landfall, officials from Gov. Ron DeSantis on down said they expected the hurricane to weaken from a Category 5, but that changes in modeling meant it would still be a historically strong storm. I warned you that It's difficult to predict what will happen.
With that in mind, here's what some states were preparing to respond quickly after the storm passes.
- More than 6,500 Florida National Guard members.
- Approximately 200 members of the Florida National Guard.
- Hundreds of land, air and water vehicles supporting FNG and FSG.
- The Florida Department of Law Enforcement directs 500 out-of-state law enforcement officers.
- More than 100 Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission employees.
- Florida Highway Patrol escorts fuel trucks and refills depleted gas stations.
- More than 50,000 linemen to restore power. and
- The Florida Fire Marshal's Office deploys 23 urban search and rescue teams and 10 rapid water supply teams.
DeSantis made clear that while the federal government and the Federal Emergency Management Agency are assisting the state in preparing for Hurricane Milton, his administration is leading the charge.
It took nearly a week for President Joe Biden to authorize active-duty troops.
However, this does not mean that recovering from two hurricanes in a short period of time will be easy. More than 10 people have died and hundreds still need rescue. But assets and infrastructure were in place to take action as soon as it was safe. ”
The same couldn't be said for North Carolina, where Hurricane Helen hit the western part of the state.
This is not to say that North Carolina was completely unprepared for major flooding. In fact, there were multiple warnings about the danger before Helen's rain. Shortly before Helen affected the state, Gov. Roy Cooper (D) Found It's time to talk to The New York Times about “How North Carolina is fighting climate change with NYT Climate Forward.”
However, what Blaze Media discovered on the ground was that few assets were in place to serve isolated communities in mountainous regions. Therefore, private organizations, volunteers, and local residents were often the first first responders. A few days. Government agencies were moving around to help North Carolina, but there wasn't enough to meet demand despite warnings that it would be a significant storm for the region.
It was clear that the state and federal governments were trying to play catch-up.
It took nearly a week for President Joe Biden to take office. approve Active-duty troops were sent to help the 1,000 North Carolina National Guard members who were overwhelmed by calls for help. Further complicating recovery efforts in western North Carolina is the fact that miles of roads up the mountain have been washed away. Sometimes there is no place for a helicopter to land.
Flooding in the North Carolina Mountains is rare, but not unprecedented. In July 1916, a hurricane that first hit South Carolina and then moved north flooded Asheville and surrounding areas. The storm killed more than 80 people and caused millions of dollars worth of damage.
More recently, Tropical Storms Ivan and Francis caused extensive flooding in the Asheville area in 2004.
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