President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. Approves Emergency Declaration for Florida

WASHINGTON --FEMA Press Release June 25, 2021 

FEMA announced federal emergency aid has been made available to the state of Florida to supplement state and local recovery efforts to the emergency conditions resulting from the Surfside Building Collapse beginning on June 24, 2021 and continuing.

The president’s action authorizes FEMA to coordinate all disaster relief efforts, which have the purpose of alleviating the hardship and suffering caused by the emergency on the local population, and to provide appropriate assistance for required emergency measures, authorized under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, to save lives and to protect property and public health and safety and to lessen or avert the threat of a catastrophe in Miami-Dade County.

Specifically, FEMA is authorized to identify, mobilize, and provide at its discretion, equipment and resources necessary to alleviate the impacts of the emergency. The Individuals and Households Program under the Stafford Act and assistance for debris removal and emergency protective measures, including direct federal assistance, will be provided.

Thomas J. McCool has been named as the Federal Coordinating Officer for federal response operations for the affected area. Additional designations may be made later if requested by the state and warranted by the results of further assessments.