We would like to thank Karli Barnett from CBS Miami for highlighting just a small fraction of what is taking place on the west coast. Their story can be viewed here: Team South Florida helping first responders. A lot of the help provided and families met are not captured or shared on camera because the emotions become so real during the moment. While many are thankfully in “okay” shape, there is still so much devastation, so many who lost absolutely everything, and so many continuing to struggle. We will be making another trip to SW Florida with collected items and donations on October 29th. If anyone knows of a specific family or location in need, please do not hesitate to let us know.
Click to view our Hurricane Ian First Responder Relief Mission Flyer
Click to view our Shareable press release
Click to view our Request list via Amazon
Regarding the death toll, we fear the numbers are actually much higher than what has been reported. We are unsure if we will ever actually know the exact amount of those killed. Without being graphic, the storm was so strong that many areas were literally washed away. We applaud the rescue and recovery efforts that have occurred and continue to take place. We know active duty first responders completed over 2,500 rescues. That number is also realistically much higher. There is no telling how many rescues some amazing private organizations and volunteers completed on top of those.
We were absolutely blown away by the level of preparedness and continuous around the clock work by the lineman and utility workers. We went from a high of over TWO MILLION without power to now as of this afternoon, less than 11,000 still without power. To that note, it is worth mentioning some areas are still unable to safely receive power.
Florida’s First Lady Casey DeSantis worked with Sara Newhouse, State Disaster Recovery Mental Health Coordinator, and put together available resources for mental health needs. We are sharing their website here: Mental Health support.
We are told all accessible State-owned bridges were inspected across the State. Locally owned bridges are still being inspected. Access has been restored to the Pine Island Bridge and the Sanibel Causeway. Comcast Xfinity and AT&T are continuing to offer free internet connectivity at various mobile locations to include Walmart in Cape Coral, Fort Myers, and Port Charlotte. Mobile licensing units are now available through the State in select counties to assist those in need of license and registration services. You can visit FLHSMV.gov for specific availability and locations.
Like Andrew, our Director of Public Affairs mentioned, this will be a long continuous recovery effort for many months to follow. Thank you again to all those who have supported us. The easiest way to support us is purchasing items from the Amazon request list. Shipping is automatically setup to our 13 Fifty Apparel Family who have been kind enough to store everything prior to our trips.
Please send an email to andrew@teamsouthflorida.org or text us at 702.527.1290 with contact info and an address of anyone you would like us to attempt to follow up with.
Thank you and stay safe,
The TSF LE Family
