Maxwell Frost warns about misinformation online about FEMA as Milton nears

U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost called out fake news spreading online about the federal relief efforts as Hurricane Milton nears Florida.

Frost said he wanted to address “misinformation we’re seeing online, even in our own community, about resources that are available to individuals directly from the federal government. It’s important that people know that there’s a process to this that hasn’t been done yet.”

Hurricane Milton is making landfall over the next few hours and then passing through the state.

“After the storm, the state will request this individual assistance from FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency), and FEMA will then go through a process to be granted or not granted. That process hasn’t happened yet,” Frost said at an Orange County press conference Wednesday on hurricane preparedness. 

“And so if you see something online about … a $1,200 number, the $750 number, it’s all misinformation. There is no number. It hasn’t been approved yet. It hasn’t been requested by the state. And I think it’s important for people that keep that in mind.”

Federal resources, including 300 ambulances and helicopters, urban search and rescue teams and more are in Florida to help post-Milton.

“I want to assure everybody in our community that Florida has strong federal support in terms of this storm and our previous storm and the cleanup that’s going on,” the Orlando Democrat said. “There are many federal resources prestaged already and ready to jump into action.”

On Monday, Frost hitched a ride on the government’s Hurricane Hunter plane that flies into the storm to collect data that helps forecasters understand the system.

Frost called the nine-hour flight a frightening reality of Milton’s strength.

“The extreme turbulence we experienced on the flight really underscores how ferocious and huge the storm is,” Frost said Wednesday. “I want to make sure that people don’t take this lightly.”