The joint federal and state emergency response and damage assessments were underway on Oct. 10
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WASHINGTON — The joint federal and state emergency response and damage assessments were underway on Oct. 10 as Hurricane Milton moves out of Florida. FEMA encourages everyone in the affected areas to continue following the directions of state and local officials, only returning home when told to do so. While the immediate danger from the storm has passed, conditions on the ground require Floridians to take extreme caution as they begin their recovery.
FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell is on the ground in Florida with state and local officials assessing the impacts of the storm.
“Because of President Biden’s swift approval of the pre-landfall emergency declaration, we were able to deploy some of our search and rescue teams to help in those counties that were impacted by the tornados,” said FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell. “We have over 1,000 federal responders that have been in the state supporting the response and recovery efforts, and not just from Helene, but also the recovery efforts from Ian, Idalia and Debby. Once we know more about the impacts of Milton, we can move in more resources to support them at the state’s request.”
Commodities, volunteer agencies, response assets and federal personnel are being coordinated through the FEMA Region 4 Regional Response Coordination Center in Atlanta and the National Response Coordination Center in Washington, D.C. Both facilities are activated on 24-hour operations to support the state.
• Several FEMA Incident Management Assistance Teams have been deployed to various parts of the state to assist with requests for assistance immediately after the storm.
• Ten federal search and rescue teams are in the state to assist survivors.
Stay safe after the storm.
• DO NOT enter your damaged home if you smell gas, floodwaters remain around the building or if authorities have not declared it safe to return. If your home has received significant flood damage, ensure that the electricity is off and that you are wearing appropriate safety gear before entering.