Alabama is aiding Florida as residents are repairing damage from Hurricane Milton, which smashed through coastal communities and tore homes to pieces, flooded streets and spawned deadly tornadoes.
At least eight people were dead, but many are expressing relief that Milton wasn’t worse.
Gov. Kay Ivey on Thursday announced the deployment of a 57-person Type III Urban Search and Rescue Task Force to Florida as the state recovers from Hurricanes Milton and Helene. The governor also activated additional Alabama National Guard (ALNG) Soldiers to assist with the Hurricane Helene response in North Carolina.
“Alabamians do not hesitate to lend help when our neighbors are in need. I am proud we have the Alabama National Guard and first responders supporting the efforts in both North Carolina and Florida,” said Governor Ivey in a press release. “I pray for the safety of our Alabama Guard, first responders, linemen and other volunteers, and I pray for all the states recovering from these devastating hurricanes.”
Governor Ivey’s additional activation to North Carolina includes a 16-person team from the 20th Special Forces Group to perform multi-role operations in remote areas as part of the ongoing response to Hurricane Helene. A prior authorization sent the ALNG’s 13-person Fatality Search and Recovery Team to operate in the Lake Lure area of North Carolina.
The pair of hurricanes have stormed their way into this year’s presidential election.
The back-to-back hurricanes have jumbled the schedules of Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump, both of whom devoted part of their Thursdays to tackling questions about the storm recovery effort.
The two hurricanes are forcing basic questions about who as president would best respond to deadly natural disasters, a once-overlooked issue that has become an increasingly routine part of the job. And just weeks before the Nov. 5 election, the storms have disrupted the mechanics of voting in several key counties.
