President Joe Biden spoke on Monday to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a 2024 challenger, to tell him he had approved an emergency declaration for the state as Tropical Storm Idalia strengthens and heads toward the coast.
Biden assured the governor that Florida will have the federal government’s full support as they prepare for its impact, according to the White House.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has pre-deployed personnel and assets, including multiple Incident Management Assistance Teams, in preparation for response efforts. The agency’s National Response Coordination Center has also been fully activated to support any requests for federal assistance, the White House said.
Read more: Florida Faces Major Hurricane Threat From Strengthening Idalia
The storm threatens to hit Florida’s west coast Wednesday with hurricane-force strength, a year after Hurricane Ian also struck the state as a Category 4 storm, killing at least 150 people and causing more than $112 billion in damage.
Biden and DeSantis, now a contender for the Republican presidential nomination, put aside their political differences after Ian — touring devastated areas in October 2022 in a show of unity. DeSantis at the time thanked Biden, saying he had helped to cut through red tape to help deliver assistance to ravaged communities.
The two have since sparred over a number of issues, including immigration and new school educational standards in Florida. DeSantis formally entered the presidential race in May, but is a distant second in primary polls to the Republican frontrunner, former President Donald Trump.
Large swaths of Florida’s western coast are at risk of flooding. DeSantis said tens of thousands of linemen are preparing for the storm’s arrival but urged residents to prepare and expect power losses.
In a press conference Monday, DeSantis said that evacuation orders were coming for barrier islands and low-lying areas areas along the state’s Gulf Coast. The governor declared an emergency in 33 counties along the state’s Gulf Coast over the weekend.
Idalia is the latest weather emergency to brace the US, coming just weeks after deadly wildfires in Hawaii and heavy rains brought flooding to California. American cities have also suffered from extreme heat as well as the effects of wildfires in Canada, which coated the sky with thick, toxic smoke.
Biden has used the recent spate of extreme weather events to highlight measures in his Inflation Reduction Act to spur a clean-energy boom aimed at reducing climate impacts, alongside a broader push to highlight his economic agenda and reverse poor polling on the issue.
