Hurricane Debby made landfall in the state Monday morning as a Category 1 storm near Steinhatchee, with 80 mph winds. Since then, the hurricane has been downgraded to a tropical storm and is slowly moving toward Georgia and South Carolina.
Significant damage due to flooding and downed trees was left behind in the storm’s wake, along with power outages impacting approximately 92,182 Floridians, according to poweroutage.us.
With that said, the following state agencies are using technology to assist those impacted by the storm:
- According to a press release from the governor’s office, the Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM) “has activated the State Emergency Operations Center to a Level 1 and is leading coordination efforts for the State Emergency Response Team.” According to FDEM’s website, the State Emergency Operations Center is a “communications and command center for reporting emergencies and coordinating state response activities alongside county emergency officials.”
- The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has aerial surveillance drones ready to deploy, along with other aircraft, to provide aerial assistance, surveillance and post-storm damage assessments.
- The Florida Department of Law Enforcement’s Missing Endangered Persons Information Clearinghouse and Florida’s Fusion Center have moved operations to ensure consistency during and after the storm.
- The Florida Department of Management Services is working with wireless partners to provide post-landfall assistance and has pre-staged 93 Starlink units for immediate deployment to provide on-demand Internet service to those in need.
- The Florida Department of Environmental Protection activated WaterTracker, an online portal for drinking and wastewater facilities to report their operational status after the storm.
More information about how state agencies are using tech to help after the storm can be found online.
