Surrounded by the damage left behind by hurricanes Helene and Milton, people across Florida are facing the daunting task of cleaning up, but many lack the electricity and fuel to do it.
Hampered by roads blocked by fallen trees and flooding, fuel suppliers and power companies are working to get the infrastructure of daily life back up and running, and police are aiding recovery efforts by providing escorts to fuel tankers trying to reach those most in need.
President Joe Biden will visit Florida to survey the damage after the storm, the White House announced. He will take an aerial tour to see some of the most heavily damaged areas, meet with first responders, and speak in St. Petersburg on Sunday morning.
Here’s the latest:
• Gas stations still waiting for fuel: Just under 30% of the state’s gas stations have no fuel as of early Sunday, according to the monitoring website GasBuddy.com. In the hard-hit Tampa-St. Petersburg area, more than three quarters of stations, 77%, are out of gas. In the Sarasota area, 62%. Around Ft. Myers and Naples area, it’s 42%, and in the Orlando area, 35%. More than 37.3 million gallons of fuel have been offloaded at Florida ports, according to Kevin Guthrie, director of the state’s Division of Emergency Management. “We have right now 25 Florida Highway Patrol escorts to rush in the fuel tankers from the port, and so those are being brought in to fill out the stations,” Gov. Ron DeSantis said. Three public fuel sites in Plant City, Bradenton, and St. Petersburg have been opened, where customers can receive 10 gallons of gas each for free. The governor said more will be opened Sunday in Charlotte, Pinellas, and Hillsborough counties.
• Power is gradually being restored: As of early Sunday, a little over 1 million people remained out of power across the state, down from a peak of nearly 3 million. Crews from across the country are working to reconnect homes and businesses to the grid. The power companies are estimating most people will have electricity by midweek.
• St. Petersburg offers gas and charging stations: The city of St. Petersburg has set up temporary stations to help residents in need, with a place to charge their phones and pick up essentials like bottled water, batteries, and tarps. The city remains under a boil water notice due to multiple line breaks, and 25 crews are on the streets picking up debris. “We have weathered two storms in less than two weeks. This is unprecedented from a debris standpoint but it’s still our top priority to get our city cleaned up and resume to some type of normalcy,” said Mike Jefferis, city enrichment administrator.
• President Biden approves major disaster declaration: President Joe Biden approved a major disaster declaration for the state on Saturday, according to FEMA. “Federal disaster assistance is available to the state of Florida to supplement recovery efforts in the areas affected by Hurricane Milton” from October 5 onward, a FEMA news release stated. Biden’s approval makes funding available for people in more than 30 counties impacted by Milton, according to the release. The funds include grants for temporary housing and home repairs.
Ongoing flooding issues after Milton dumped 16 inches of rain over Hillsborough County have hindered the area’s recovery from the storm, Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said Saturday.
“The water doesn’t subside as rapidly as all of us would like, so this healing, this recovery, is taking a lot longer,” Chronister said.
Meanwhile, the National Weather Service office in Tampa Bay continued flood warnings for rivers in Hillsborough, Sarasota, and Manatee counties and several other locations Saturday, with some set to remain in effect “until further notice,” according to the weather service.
The Alafia River in Lithia, Florida, and the Hillsborough River, both in the Tampa area, remained at major flood stage by early Sunday.
Chronister said Saturday Hillsborough County’s crews performed more than 300 rescues within a 48-hour period, adding teams are working around the clock.
Dozens of Florida drivers likely low on fuel for days waited in lengthy lines Saturday outside gas stations in hopes of filling their tanks and cans, as shortages in the state’s hard-hit areas persisted.
One of those lines made of at least 20 drivers stretched across the intersection while letting other drivers travel through, video showed. But relief was en route Saturday for some stations, including at a Wawa in Valrico, Florida, where Hillsborough County sheriff’s deputies escorted a gas tanker truck as several drivers awaited the chance to use the pumps.
Then on Saturday, they got a call from one of their friends saying a Wawa station had gas. “So me and my son immediately ran over here, and we’ve been in line for about an hour and a half, literally on fumes,” Cast said.