Hurricane Idalia Situational Report

Sol Relief team members have been in daily Florida VOAD (Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster) meetings with around 100 other state agencies and NGOs.

As of now, the needs are being covered and there aren't any gap areas in the response.

We have partner organizations that will be sharing their needs assessment report later today (8-31-2023) and we will be on the FL VOAD call this afternoon to learn more about the ground situation and any updated needs.

Here are notes from our calls with partner organizations:

• Shelters are open - as of 8/29/23 approximately 1,000 people in shelter
• Space for over 20,000
• Waterways and ports are being monitored by Coast Guard to start and continue operations
• Number of roads are closed due to downed trees, power lines and flooding
• President has declared the Big Bend area a disaster area
• Organizations are creating a map of areas where individuals can find food and emotional/mental/spiritual support
• Organizations have immediate support for:
• Food & water
• Muck & gut, tarps, route clearance
• Shelters
• Medical assistance
• Disabled support
• Teams have created a platform for home owners to be able to request clean up help
• ITDRC - Help with tech support for response. Staging area setup outside of Perry, FL
• Technology, Charging stations, laptops available
• Red Cross will provide preliminary damage assessment - will be available soon
• Most areas are still at a stage where streets and towns are not safe for anyone who is not specifically trained in a specific area.
• FEMA Report:
• Available, willing and able to help where needed
• Working with other State and Non-profit organizations to collaborate efforts
• Sol Relief Partner Support
• Hygiene Kits - ready to ship hygiene kits as needed.
• Solar Lights - can be available first thing next week.
• Other parts of Florida Reporting:
• Lee County having residual issues with housing from Ian
• Tampa Bay to Pasco County issues with flooding

For a more detailed report with specific information about resources in the affected areas, please visit this website.

All photos in this post courtesy of Evan Bunkers via @EvanBuWX

How Can You Help?

We are accepting donations and will manage any funds received to support our partner organizations that are working in the affected areas. It’s also still possible that we will stand up our own relief or longterm recovery projects, in which case your donations will be used to fund those efforts.