Governor DeSantis provides an update on current efforts to respond to Hurricane Helene

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Gov. Ron DeSantis will hold a news conference in Pasco County on Sunday morning to provide an update on Hurricane Helene response efforts.

Click play above to watch the press conference live

Eleven people died in Florida when Hurricane Helene made landfall in the Big Bend region late Thursday evening as a powerful Category 4 storm, Gov. Ron DeSantis said Saturday morning during a news conference in Taylor County.

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The fatalities included traffic fatalities and people directly affected by the storm surge.

Helene made landfall at Dekle Beach in Taylor County with maximum sustained winds of 140 miles per hour. There were no storm-related fatalities in this county.

“If you look around here, we see some houses that are now just rubble,” DeSantis said Saturday. “We see a lot of damage here.”

DeSantis said storm surges were “historic,” exceeding those of Hurricane Idalia, particularly in Tampa Bay and the Big Bend region.

On Saturday, Governor and First Lady Casey DeSantis announced the activation of the Florida Disaster Fund to help communities affected by the hurricane.

This fund is the state’s official private fund established to assist communities in responding and recovering during times of emergency and disaster.

Donations to the fund are tax deductible.

MORE | The Florida Disaster Fund supports communities affected by Ian

Donations can be made at FloridaDisasterFund.org or by mail. Checks should be made payable to Volunteer Florida Foundation and include “Florida Disaster Fund” in the memo line.

Donations by mail should be written as follows:

Florida Voluntary Foundation

Attention: Florida Disaster Fund

1545 Raymond Diehl Road Suite 250

Tallahassee, FL 32308