Joe Biden returns to a beleaguered Florida to survey Hurricane Milton damage in Tampa area

ST. PETE BEACH — Returning to a beleaguered state battered by back-to-back hurricanes, President Joe Biden landed in Florida Sunday to again survey the damage from a major storm and rally federal resources around a recovery effort that likely will take years and billions of dollars.

Biden was in Florida just 10 days earlier to assess the impact of Hurricane Helene, which made landfall in the Big Bend region as a Category 4 storm before cutting a swath of destruction north through Georgia, North Carolina and other states.

The president headed back to Florida after Hurricane Milton made landfall Oct. 9 on Siesta Key as a Category 3 storm, delivering a second powerful blow. Nearly a million electric utility customers still were without power in Florida Sunday morning and gasoline shortages persist.

After arriving at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Biden toured damaged areas by helicopter, met with state and local officials, greeted residents impacted by the storms and first responders. He also spoke to the media in front of a collapsed home in St. Pete Beach, a barrier island community inundated by storm surge.

“We’re going to do everything we can to get power back in your home, not only helping you recover but to help you build back stronger," Biden said.

Between Helene and Milton, much of the West Coast of Florida – from the small, coastal towns of Steinhatchee and Cedar Key down through the heavily populated Tampa Bay region, Sarasota and points south – has experienced extensive storm damage. Milton also battered parts of central Florida and the East Coast.

More than 200 people died in Helene across multiple states, and at least 17 in Milton.

Storm surge flooding devastated coastal areas. Some regions also have extensive wind damage, including from a rash of tornados spawned by Milton, and flooding from heavy rains.

The hurricanes also brought political fights, as Republicans led by former President Donald Trump accused the Biden administration of not doing enough to help storm victims, prompting fierce pushback from the president as Election Day approaches in three weeks.

Such disasters should be moments for bipartisan cooperation, Biden said Sunday.

“It’s in moments like this we come together to take care of each other, not as Democrats and Republicans, but as Americans," he said. "Americans who need help and Americans who would help you if you were in the same situation. We are one United States.”

Among those greeting Biden in Florida were Republicans U.S. Sen. Rick Scott and U.S. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna. Biden later told reporters that he didn't speak with GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis during his visit.

"Republicans and Democrats are happy with what we’re doing," Biden said. "We’re making progress.”

DeSantis' emergency management director, Kevin Guthrie, attended the St. Pete Beach event.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said DeSantis was invited to participate in the events with Biden Sunday but the White House didn't hear back.

"The White House press secretary is incorrect," DeSantis spokesman Jeremy Redfern said in response. "Director Kevin Guthrie was there representing Governor DeSantis. The Division of Emergency Management is part of the Executive Office of the Governor. Therefore, President Biden heard directly from the governor’s office."

Asked why DeSantis didn't attend himself, Redfern said Guthrie "is the governor’s designated representative."

Before Biden’s trip Sunday, the White House sent media outlets a long list of actions taken before and after both hurricanes to get federal resources to affected communities.

Biden noted that the Federal Emergency Management Agency has delivered 1.2 million meals, more than 300,000 liters of water and 2 million gallons of fuel while installing 100 satellite terminals to restore communications. The federal government has opened 10 disaster recovery centers in Florida with more to come, he added, noting more than 250,000 people registered for federal disaster help the day before his trip.

And while many Floridians remain without power, more than 2 million have seen their power restored in recent days by utility workers from 43 states and Canada, Biden said.

The president also announced funding Sunday to help with future storms – $614 million in federal grants to communities to improve their electric grids, including $94 million for Florida.

Storm debris was piled high in the streets surrounding where Biden spoke Sunday in St. Pete Beach. The contents of many people's homes and businesses were ruined by storm surge from the Gulf and tossed on the curb, everything from mattresses to dressers, chairs and filing cabinets.

Most businesses were closed and many were still boarded up. One business had signs outside painted on what appeared to be mattress box springs reading "Mr. President Small Business Needs Help" and "Family Owned Since 1988 and Devasted."

Part-time St Pete Beach resident Paul Giardina was happy to see the president in town, saying he hopes it speeds recovery efforts. Giardina lives in one-story condo building with seven units near where Biden spoke. His property, which is just a short walk to the Gulf, was spared significant damage from both Helene and Milton.

Helene sent about half an inch of water into the building, ruining a bed, rugs and other items. Milton tore off roof shingles. But Giardina was grateful the storms didn’t do more damage, noting a house behind him lost the roof, and a condo building next door had more than 3 feet of water inside.

“We were the lucky ones,” he said.

Giardina lives in Lenox, Massachusetts, during the summer, where he owns an excavating business. He has wintered in St. Pete beach for the last six years with two brothers, three cousins and a friend in the same condo building they purchased together.

He arrived in Florida one day after Helene to check on the property, paying a teenager $50 to give him a ride on a jet ski to the island community. While his property weathered both storms well, the overall community was devastated.

“It’s pretty horrifying,” Giardina said. “Like a war zone, anything within two blocks of the beach.”

St. Pete Beach is in Pinellas County, where Cathi Perkins works as emergency management director. About half of county electric customers who lost power after Milton have been restored, she said as she walked down the street toward the empty lot where Biden spoke.

The community is tired and frustrated, Perkins said, but it’s encouraging to know more help is on the way.

“We’re just very grateful that both the state and federal governments are here to help us and provide us with resources,” Perkins added. “I think it means a lot to people to see that we’re not alone.”

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Joe Biden surveys Hurricane Milton damage in St. Pete, Florida areas