NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. – This morning, Senator Rick Scott visited Pasco County Emergency Operations Center to receive a briefing from Sheriff Chris Nocco, local law enforcement leaders and emergency management officials regarding response and recovery efforts for Hurricane Helene.

Senator Rick Scott said, “I want to thank the emergency management officials, Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco and first responders for working through the night to ensure Florida families here have what they need to stay safe as we begin to recover from Category 4 Hurricane Helene. Nearly the entire Gulf Coast of Florida experienced intense rain and storm surge that has brought power outages and damage to many folks’ homes. Please make sure you are listening to your local law enforcement. There are still many downed power lines and hazards, like standing water, that can harm you—so stay vigilant. Your local leaders are on top of it this morning, and have already dispatched first responders to start getting everyone the help they need. I am here to emphasize that Floridians can count on me to be their partner at the federal level and will continue working with FEMA on Hurricane Helene response and recovery efforts. As I always say, you can rebuild your home, but you can’t rebuild your life. I urge families to continue to follow the directions of local authorities and stay safe. If there is one thing I know, it is that Floridians are resilient and we will get through this together.”

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This week, Senator Scott has had daily calls with the National Hurricane Center (NHC) and been in contact with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to receive the latest updates on Hurricane Helene. Prior to Helene's landfall, Senator Scott received briefings from law enforcement and emergency management officials in Bay County, Franklin County, Taylor County and Levy County. See more HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE.

On Monday, Senator Scott and Senator Marco Rubio sent a letter to President Joe Biden urging his immediate approval of the State of Florida’s request for a pre-landfall emergency declaration for potentially impacted Florida counties. Following receipt of this letter, President Biden approved an emergency declaration for the State of Florida on Tuesday afternoon.

Senator Scott encourages all Floridians to visit his website at https://www.rickscott.senate.gov/hurricane-season-resources for information and resources on Hurricane Helene response and recovery. See the latest on Hurricane Helene from the National Hurricane Center at nhc.noaa.gov or @NHC_Atlantic on X, formerly known as Twitter, and from the Florida Division of Emergency Management at floridadisaster.org or @FLSERT.

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