Administrator of the US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Deanne Criswell briefed President Joe Biden on the trajectory of, and preparations for, Hurricane Idalia which is expected to make landfall in the State of Florida late Tuesday night.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting at the Oval Office, she said, "In addition to responding to the current storms as well as other incidents, we have to remain focused on making sure that we are also preparing people across the nation for these types of extreme weather events." "I want to just give a quick update on the preparations that we are making in response or in preparation for the response in Florida as well as other states that are in the path of Hurricane Idalia.
Yesterday, I had an opportunity to speak with Governor DeSantis. I also had an opportunity to connect with South Carolina, Governor McMaster and Georgia Governor Kemp to help understand what their concerns were and to identify any unmet needs that they may foresee. "And we'll remain in close contact with all of them in the hours and the days to come as Hurricane Adelia -- Idalia makes landfall and moves across these states.
"And they are all ready to pivot to the most impacted areas immediately after the storm passes," Criswell affirmed. "We also have warehouses filled with commodities like food, water, blankets and medical supplies that are ready to rapidly move into the impacted area at the state's request. "But we are not in this alone. We have an entire federal family that is postured to support.
"Our National Response Coordination Center here in Washington DC is fully activated. And this means that there are several hundred staff from across the federal family that are working together to support any requests for federal assistance. "We have our partners from the US Army Corps of Engineers who are pre-positioned to support any power restoration needs," she went on.
"As the President said to Governor DeSantis in his own conversations yesterday, FEMA and the entire federal family are activated to support the people of Florida. "The President also quickly approved an emergency declaration in advance of the storm in Florida," she added.
Source: Kuwait News Agency
