Gov. Scott Activates 900 Additional Florida National Guard Members to Assist with Hurricane Irma Preparedness

Statement

Today, Governor Rick Scott activated an additional 900 members of the Florida Army and Air National Guard to support with planning, logistics and operations in preparation for potential impacts from Hurricane Irma. These 900 members will respond to requests across the state to ensure communities are fully prepared for the storm. Governor Scott has now activated a total of 1,000 Guard members and the remaining 6,000 National Guard members will be reporting for duty no later than Friday morning. On Monday, Governor Scott issued Executive Order 17-235, which declared a state of emergency in all 67 counties within the State of Florida in response to Hurricane Irma and allowed for the immediate activation of National Guard members as preparedness actions continue.

Governor Scott said, "Today I am activating an additional 900 members of the Florida Army and Air National Guard to immediately begin assisting with ongoing Hurricane Irma preparation. By the end of today, there will be a total of 1,000 National Guard members activated. Hurricane Irma is an extremely dangerous and life-threatening Category 5 storm and the state is aggressively preparing to ensure families are safe as we prepare for a possible landfall. The brave men and women of the Florida National Guard are incredibly important to executing emergency preparedness and response actions across the state and I will continue to activate more members as needed. These members will be in place to help with evacuations and sheltering, as well as the coordination of search and rescue with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. National Guard members will also be assisting utility companies following the storm as they respond to return power to homes and businesses."

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