Biden surveys Milton damage in Florida, announces funding for power grid

ST. PETE BEACH, Fla. — For the second time in just a few weeks, President Biden paid a visit to Florida to see the damage to the state’s West Coast, this time caused by Hurricane Milton.

Biden landed in Tampa on Sunday morning accompanied by federal and local officials, later taking a helicopter to St. Pete Beach, situated on a barrier island hit especially hard by the storm.

Milton caused much less total damage than forecasters predicted, but some communities, such as St. Pete and other inland communities around Tampa, are dealing with debris first caused by Helene and made worse by Milton.

“For some individuals, it was cataclysmic,” Biden said of Milton during his speech. “All those people who probably lost their home and, more importantly, those people who lost their lives, lost family members, lost all their personal belongings.”

Biden’s motorcade passed through the devastation brought by Milton before speaking in a hard-hit neighborhood in St. Pete Beach. Entire buildings have been demolished, crooked palm trees and piles of debris still litter the streets. A hotel sign that said “come as a guest, leave as a friend” was torn down.

As part of his visit, Biden announced $612 million for six Department of Energy projects to improve the resiliency of electrical grids in hurricane-affected areas. This includes $94 million for two projects in Florida: $47 million for Gainesville Regional Utilities and $47 million for Switched Source, which helps modernize existing infrastructure in partnership with utility Florida Power and Light.

President Biden speaks after meeting with federal, state and local officials in St. Pete Beach, Florida, while touring areas affected by Hurricane Milton on Sunday.

About 850,000 customers statewide were still without power, according to PowerOutage.us, as of 3 p.m. ET — down from the more than 3 million who lost power after the Milton attack.

Biden’s speech took place near Gulf Blvd. in St. Pete Beach, in front of a listed building.

In what appeared to be an indirect response to criticism from former President Donald Trump and other Republicans, Biden said humanitarian aid is not a partisan issue.

“We are one United States,” Biden said.

Trump and others have falsely claimed that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has no money for hurricane recovery due to spending on migrants and foreign wars (neither of these claims are true).

On Friday, Biden approved a Major Disaster Declaration for Florida, freeing up federal funds for residents and business owners to use for temporary housing and home repairs and low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses. Biden said he has directed FEMA to open 10 disaster recovery centers across the state so residents can access resources for federal assistance.

Notably absent from Biden’s visit was Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who following the storm became embroiled in a spat with Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris.

NBC News reported last week that DeSantis refused to take Harris’ call about hurricane relief — an accusation the Republican governor denied. DeSantis then claimed that Harris was trying to “politicize the storm.” Harris called him “totally irresponsible” and “selfish.”