Staff Reports
Gov. Rick Scott has declared a statewide state of emergency as Hurricane Irma appears more likely to affect Florida.
Scott issued an executive order on Monday afternoon.
Irma, now a Category 3 hurricane, “is a major and life-threatening storm and Florida must be prepared,” Scott said in a statement.
“I have continued to be briefed by the Florida Division of Emergency Management on Irma and current forecast models have Florida in Irma’s path – potentially impacting millions of Floridians,” he said.
“Today, given these forecasts and the intensity of this storm, I have declared a state of emergency for every county in Florida to make certain that state, federal and local governments are able to work together and make sure resources are dispersed to local communities as we get prepared for this storm,” Scott added.
“While the exact path of Irma is not known at this time, we cannot afford to not be prepared,” the governor said. “This state of emergency allows our emergency management officials to act swiftly in the best interest of Floridians without the burden of bureaucracy or red tape.”
Residents were encouraged to visit FLGetAPlan.com as Irma makes its way toward land.
One comment
Bonnie
September 6, 2017 at 9:58 am
With an Emergency in Florida why didn’t the governor make sure Floridians have access to water and gasoline prior to evac?
No water in the stores, gas stations running out, hotels filled, no high speed train to get out, highways are clogged. We can’t get out if we wanted to. Options are stay home and hunker down or risk getting caught with no gas and no where to go on the road.
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