Located in what’s often called hurricane alley, the Sunshine State is no stranger to natural disasters, but each storm is unique and tests emergency management capabilities in different ways.
Hurricane Helene was no exception and roared across the Florida Big Bend in late September 2024.
The hurricane was a Category 4 cyclone with sustained winds of 140 mph at the time of landfall, making it the strongest hurricane to impact the Big Bend modern history.
And while damage was significant, the hurricane’s fast forward speed ensured that damaging wind gusts and torrential rainfall impacted communities from the Gulf Coast through the Appalachians and the Tennessee Valley.
In Florida, the storm surge was historic, inundating much of the Gulf Coast from the Big Bend southward into Charlotte County with feet of water.
In total, Gov. Ron DeSantis placed 61 of Florida’s 67 counties under a state of emergency, and emergency operations centers operated under their highest alert status.
The breadth of activation underscored the storm’s wide impact across the state, with many of the same areas impacted around two weeks later by Hurricane Milton.
Following the tropical activity, many local government agencies completed after-action reports, highlighting what went well and where improvements were needed.
Lee County officials noted improvements in debris removal operations, an area that had been a weak point during previous storms.
The county also highlighted improvements inside its emergency operations center, with better collaboration among stakeholders.
Even with recent spats with hurricanes such as Ian, Irma and Charley, there were challenges that were highlighted.
For instance, there wasn’t a clear policy or directive as to what information could be shared on social media, leading to confusion over when shelters opened.
The after-action report suggested developing a formal social media policy to avoid similar issues during future storms.
Further north in the Tampa metro, Hillsborough County highlighted not giving emergency staff a time period to attend to their own families and properties before a storm hits.
Additionally, crews noted that sandbag operations needed a revamp, as both traffic and poor lighting made the operations dangerous during storm preparations.
A common issue across impacted coastal regions was the need for stronger public messaging about electric vehicles. Many were damaged by storm surge, prompting officials to plead with residents to move the vehicles away from their homes, if they could reach their properties.
“If you have an electric vehicle or golf cart, and it was exposed to salt water, it needs to be moved at least 50 feet from your home. These vehicles may catch fire in the coming days,” Pinellas County officials warned during the immediate aftermath of Helene.
First responders noted that electric vehicle fires are significantly harder to extinguish than those involving gas-powered cars because of lithium-ion batteries.
Electric Vehicles that have been flooded in saltwater can catch fire. If you evacuated and left an electric vehicle or golf cart in your garage or under a building and you are not able to get to it or move it, we want you to let us know. /1 pic.twitter.com/dpfiXRAGuR
— Pinellas County (@PinellasGov) September 28, 2024
Any changes made to tropical cyclone preparations and responses have yet to be tested, as Milton was the state’s last landfalling storm on Oct. 9, 2024.
None of the first eight tropical cyclones of the 2025 season came close to making landfall in the Sunshine State, but there is still around two months remaining in the hurricane season.