President Joe Biden on Thursday warned that Hurricane Ian "could be the deadliest hurricane in Florida's history," citing reports of "substantial loss of life" as the storm moves northeast and slowly out of the state after making landfall in southwest Florida Wednesday afternoon.
Biden spoke after receiving a briefing at Federal Emergency Management Administration headquarters in Washington, D.C., where he told FEMA staff and first responders that they are "reinforcing people's faith in the institutions."
"Every time disaster strikes, emergency crews from all over the country ... from across the federal government, show up to help like they're doing right now in Florida. That's America. A country of women and men willing to serve when they leave their own families to help a stranger's family," he said.
Emergency crews on Thursday were working to respond to calls and conduct search and rescue missions in areas with severe flooding.
Charlotte County Comission Christopher Constance told CNN that he knew of six confirmed deaths in his area, while Lee County Sherriff Carmine Marceno confirmed to the network five deaths in his jursidiction.
At Governor Ron DeSantis' request, Biden also approved Thursday a broader disaster declaration for Florida to cover all 67 counties, which means federal emergency funds will cover 100% of clean-up costs for 30 days.
The two leaders spoke on the phone earlier in the morning and committed to continue “close coordination” as Hurricane Ian continued to move over the northeast part of the state, after making landfall near Fort Myers as a Category 4 hurricane, flooding homes and streets, knocking out power for millions and stranding hundreds of residents.
Biden called his relationship with DeSantis "irrelevant" to the emergency response but "very fine."
"He complimented me. He thanked me for the immediate response we had. He told me how much he appreciated it," Biden said. "This is not about anything having to do with our disagreements politically. This is about saving people's lives, homes and businesses. That's what this is about."
The president said he would go to Florida to thank first responders and survey recovery efforts as soon as "conditions allow."
Federal Emergency Management Administration chief Deanne Criswell will visit the state on Friday at Biden’s request.
DeSantis said Thursday morning that he told the president “thanks” for the federal support and that he had requested the expanded disaster declaration, which will cover debris removal, search and rescue efforts, food and water and emergency mass care.
“We have everything we need in terms of supply,” he said, noting Floridians can volunteer to help or donate at floridadisasterfund.org.
About 2.5 million people were without power as of Thursday afternoon. DeSantis called the storm a “500 year flood event.”
“The impacts of this storm are historic, and the damage that was done has been historic — and this is just off initial assessments,” the governor said.