TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – This week, Governor DeSantis and the Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM) Director Kevin Guthrie offered Florida’s support in response to the deadly tornadoes that affected nine states in parts of the Midwest and Tennessee Valley.

The State of Florida stands ready to aid the response efforts from all impacted states. Over the weekend, FDEM coordinated with the emergency management offices of the nine affected states to identify resource gaps and offer support as needed. The State of Florida has emergency management personnel, Urban Search and Rescue Teams, ambulance strike teams and recovery disaster specialists to deploy, if requested. The State of Florida also proactively offered assistance for any mutual aid requests

“The devastation left in the wake of the tornado outbreak over the weekend is an unthinkable tragedy, and Casey and I are keeping the victims and all impacted individuals in our prayers as initial recovery efforts begin,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “The State of Florida has been communicating with our partners in the impacted states since early Saturday morning and we stand ready to provide any assistance needed during this time. We’ll continue to work with them to ensure they have the resources they need to respond.”

“The Division is keeping the victims of the tornado outbreak at the forefront of our thoughts and prayers,” said FDEM Director Kevin Guthrie. “The impacted states have provided support to Florida in previous disasters, and we will not hesitate to return the favor. The destruction reported so far is catastrophic and the Division will continue to work closely with our emergency management counterparts as they respond to this disaster.”

Floridians who want to support initial recovery efforts can donate to the Team Western Kentucky Tornado Relief Fund. All donations to the Team Western Kentucky Tornado Relief Fund are tax-deductible and donors will receive a receipt for tax purposes after donating. The relief fund is available here.

Volunteers are asked not to self-deploy to impacted areas. For more information on how to provide support, please visit Serve Kentucky’s website here.

States impacted by the tornado outbreak include Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Indiana and Ohio.

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