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Scott PowersOctober 10, 2018

More than 388,000 homes and businesses lost power in the onslaught of Michael, with Bay County taking the brunt, according to the first power-outage release issued shortly before 6 p.m. by the Florida Division of Emergency Management. In Bay County, where Michael came ashore, more than 99,000 of the 108,000 homes and businesses were without […]

Drew WilsonOctober 9, 2018

Hurricane Michael is expected to make landfall in Northwest Florida Wednesday as a category 2 or category 3 hurricane. If the current track holds, Gulf Power said its prepped for a speedy recovery. If the wind, rain and tidal surges brought about by the storm lead to major outages for the North Florida utility’s customers, […]

Scott PowersMarch 29, 2018

State Sen. Victor Torres, clergy, and others are joining with Puerto Rican activists in Florida to protest the closures of assistance offices for people displaced by Hurricane Maria last year and to renew attention on their plight. Torres and the others, including organizers from VAMOS4PR FLORIDA, a network of statewide Puerto Rican diaspora organizations, are calling […]

Scott PowersJanuary 25, 2018

Florida Gov. Rick Scott has extended by another 60 days his executive order that has Florida and all 67 counties providing services and cutting red tape to help evacuating Puerto Ricans settle into the Sunshine State because of Hurricane Maria. On Thursday Scott signed Executive Order 18-17, a second 60-day extension of an order he […]

Scott PowersNovember 13, 2017

The influx of Puerto Ricans evacuating their devastated homes in Puerto Rico are beginning to test the capacities of Central Florida and in particular Osceola County, and more state coordination is needed, a group of local officials told Gov. Rick Scott Monday. Those officials, including Kissimmee Mayor Jose Alvarez, Osceola County Schools Superintendent Debra Pace, […]

Scott PowersNovember 1, 2017

Confusion and concern are mounting as Central Florida governments working with Puerto Rican and Virgin Island evacuees await direction from state and federal officials, leaders of Orange, Osceola, and Seminole counties warned Wednesday. In a letter Wednesday to Florida Division of Emergency Management Interim Director Wesley Maul and copied to FEMA Administrator William Long and […]

Scott PowersOctober 21, 2017

Rene Plasencia sees it in the faces of countless Puerto Rican Hurricane Maria refugees when he or someone else says, “we’re here to help you.” A mixture of anguish, relief, pain, joy, fear, confidence, hopelessness, hope — all the emotions of losing everything and traveling to a strange, new place with almost nothing, and then […]

Mitch PerryOctober 17, 2017

(UPDATED) Debbie Wasserman Schultz is again pressing Gov. Rick Scott on his decisions about debris removal in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma. The South Florida Democrat says she was already perplexed about why the Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM) refused to submit to FEMA local requests for full reimbursement. The local communities were forced to […]

Staff ReportsSeptember 26, 2017

With a little more than two months left in the 2017 hurricane season, Florida’s emergency management head is leaving his job “to pursue an opportunity in the private sector,” the Governor’s Office announced Tuesday. Gov. Rick Scott announced Bryan Koon’s resignation as director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management (DEM), effective next Sunday. “On Sept. 1, […]

Scott PowersSeptember 15, 2017

The lower Florida Keys were hammered in special ways by Hurricane Irma and remain closed to residents, visitors and even more volunteer cleanup workers as authorities try to get them livable, officials said Friday. An estimated 65 percent of the housing was damaged to the point of being uninhabitable, according to authorities, but residents will […]

Tag: Florida Division of Emergency Management

Power outages now affecting 388,000 customers after Hurricane Michael

Gulf Power stands ready to respond to Hurricane Michael

Victor Torres, Puerto Rican groups, urging more help for displaced Puerto Ricans

Rick Scott extends emergency orders for Puerto Rico evacuees

Central Florida officials ask Rick Scott for more coordination for Puerto Rico evacuees

Orange, Osceola, Seminole leaders urge Florida, FEMA to plan better for Puerto Rican refugees

Anguish, relief, fear, hope: Relief efforts serving thousands of Puerto Rico storm refugees

Debbie Wasserman Schultz again questions Rick Scott on debris removal

Personnel note: Bryan Koon quits as state emergency management head

Florida Keys still closed; ‘different kind of lifestyle for a while’