President Donald J. Trump Approves Florida Disaster Declaration

WASHINGTON, Sept. 10 -- The White House issued the following news release:

Today, President Donald J. Trump declared that a major disaster exists in the State of Florida and ordered Federal aid to supplement State, tribal, and local recovery efforts in the areas affected by Hurricane Irma beginning on September 4, 2017, and continuing.

The President's action makes Federal funding available to affected individuals in the counties of Charlotte, Collier, Hillsborough, Lee, Manatee, Miami-Dade, Monroe, Pinellas, and Sarasota.

Assistance can include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses, and other programs to help individuals and business owners recover from the effects of the disaster.

Federal funding is also available to the State and to tribal and eligible local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work in all 67 counties in the State. For a period of 30 days from the start of the incident period, assistance for emergency protective measures, including direct Federal assistance, is authorized at 100 percent of the total eligible costs.

Furthermore, Federal funding is available on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures statewide.

Brock Long, Administrator, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Department of Homeland Security, named Justo Hernandez as the Federal Coordinating Officer for Federal recovery operations in the affected areas.

Additional designations may be made at a later date if warranted by the results of further damage assessments.

Residents and business owners who sustained losses in the designated counties can begin applying for assistance by registering online at http://www.DisasterAssistance.gov or by calling 1-800-621-FEMA(3362) or 1-800-462-7585 (TTY) for the hearing and speech impaired. The toll-free telephone numbers will operate from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. (local time) seven days a week until further notice.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION MEDIA SHOULD CONTACT THE FEMA NEWS DESK AT (202) 646-3272 OR [email protected].