Jimmy Patronis urges residents to ‘prepare now’ for hurricane season

The onset of what is expected to be an extremely active hurricane season is still about two months away, but Floridians should get ready today, Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis says.

“I encourage all Floridians statewide to prepare now to ensure you, your family, and your businesses have a disaster plan in place,” said Patronis, who also serves as State Fire Marshal.”

He added that residents can visit PrepareFL.com for tips and resources, including information on Florida’s tax-free home-hardening initiative, My Safe Florida Home.

Patronis’ comments came during a Friday stop at the Urban Search and Rescue Florida Task Force 2 Training Center in Miami, where he assessed hurricane preparedness and underscored the vital role of Florida’s eight urban search and rescue teams.

“I can’t thank this task force enough for their service and sacrifice to our state,” he said. “These heroes were some of the first to respond to the Surfside condo collapse and also deployed to Southwest Florida following Hurricane Ian. In 2022, I was proud to advocate and secure $10 million in funding to provide these teams with more equipment to aid in their life-saving missions.”

Urban search and rescue task force members carry out several indispensable disaster response services, from finding and saving entrapped survivors at damaged or collapsed structures and evaluating hazardous on-site materials to providing reconnaissance on urgent needs to local, state, tribal, territorial and federal officials.

Several emergency department leaders and elected officials from Miami-Dade County joined Patronis at the facility. Among them: Republican Reps. Alina García, Alex Rizo and Mike Redondo; Miami City Commissioners Miguel Gabela and Manolo Reyes; and Miami Fire Chief Joseph Zahralban.

Zahralban said it was an honor to host Patronis.

“As Floridians, we know all too well the devastation that hurricanes can cause,” he said. “We train year-round to ensure our dedicated task force members are prepared for the worst. A huge thanks to the CFO for recognizing our first responders and bringing awareness to the importance of hurricane season preparedness.”

Miami Beach Republican Rep. Fabián Basabe was invited to the facility tour, but had a family commitment.

Hurricane researchers at Colorado State University forecast that 2024 could be the most active season ever in the Atlantic Basin. They expect 23 named storms June 1-Nov. 30, including 11 hurricanes. Of those, they project five will grow to at least Category 3 strength.

Gov. Ron DeSantis said during a recent news conference that Florida, with its modern building practices and consistent utility infrastructure strengthening by Florida Power & Light, is well-prepared to weather the coming storms.

According to Rizo, however, “the most predictable thing about hurricanes is that they are unpredictable.”

“But having a solid, firm disaster plan will help your family weather the storm,” he said. “Our (urban search and rescue) teams work day and night to ensure we are all protected.”