Florida’s 2024 lawmaking session got underway Tuesday amid a massive storm that spawned tornados and wreaked havoc on small communities in the Panhandle and Big Bend. The day also marked back-to-back news-making for Gov. Ron DeSantis as he delivered the annual state-of-the-state address at the Capitol before heading to the Florida Emergency Operations Center.
Marianna and Panama City are especially hard hit. Absent from the proceedings was State Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis, who had already headed out with first responders. And Panama City Senator Jay Trumbull asked for prayers for his district. He said there had been no fatalities there, but a few injuries and a tremendous amount of damage.
“I think the thing I’d like for folks to remember is that we’re only 5 years removed from a Category 5 hurricane that went through the exact same area," he said. "So, people are hurting and frustrated and all that stuff, so my hope is that this body can rally together and make sure that they get the right resources to be able to rebuild quickly and get general business back up and going.”
Lawmakers carried on with the opening day, amid the backdrop of the wail of emergency alerts on their devices—signaling the threat of tornados.
“[emergency alerts] Our business goes on, rain or shine. [cheers and applause]”
That was House Speaker Paul Renner. The storm did delay the proceedings a bit, but soon DeSantis stood before the assembly of state leaders.
“Now, this is somewhat of a unique start to the legislative session because every government building except this one is closed in Tallahassee because of the weather," the governor said, "and we’ve had a lot of weather move through Northwest Florida.”
DeSantis had just issued an executive order declaring a state of emergency.
“And we just do what we do in Florida: We respond when these things happen, so those folks who’ve been impacted, just know that the state of Florida stands with you, and we’ll handle whatever fallout is from these dangerous tornadoes,” he said.
DeSantis then left for the Emergency Operations Center, where he said all of North Florida remains under a tornado watch and 34 school districts are closed. The schools in Jackson County, where the storm caused so much damage, will be closed tomorrow, and further county school closures will be announced. Roughly 88,000 accounts remain without power statewide. And State Emergency Manager Kevin Guthrie pointed to Jackson and Bay counties, which are still recovering from Hurricane Michael.
“It’s discouraging, but again…Bay County and the Panhandle is a very resilient community," Guthrie said. "I’m sure they’re going to bounce back. We’re going to be there. The governor has already mentioned we’re going to be there as long as it takes to help them recover and make sure they have the resources necessary to do so.”
Guthrie said it was unclear if the state would qualify for help from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, known as FEMA, but that he and his staff are working on the damage assessment.
DeSantis is due in Iowa to resume his presidential campaign. He’ll debate his rival Nikki Haley on Wednesday night.
