[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 66 (Monday, May 5, 2014)]
[Senate]
[Page S2632]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            FLORIDA FLOODING

  Mr. NELSON. Madam President, we have had a severe act of Mother 
Nature in Florida and a number of other Southeastern States, where 
skies of Biblical proportions in dumping rain have occurred. In 
Pensacola, FL, there was close to 25 inches of rain that fell within a 
24-hour period. The counties of Escambia and Santa Rosa in Florida were 
particularly hard hit, and just today the Governor of Florida requested 
a major disaster declaration from the President and sought assistance 
for that part of Florida. I passed along the Governor's request to the 
White House and asked that it be approved as soon as possible.
  Right now the State of Florida government and local governments as 
well are assisting people in need, and they are surveying the damage to 
assess the extent of the storm's impact. We are going to do everything 
we can to make sure the people have the assistance and the help they 
need during this very difficult time. Of course, it was not just in 
Florida that these storms hit; it was a number of States--Mississippi, 
Alabama, Georgia. As the storm proceeded on upwards, it occurred in a 
lot of the Southeastern United States. But particularly those States 
plus ours, in northwest Florida, is where it really hit the hardest.
  Many people have worked around the clock to save lives and to provide 
support in the immediate aftermath of the storm. Thank goodness there 
is a Florida National Guard that is as experienced as it is, and it is 
experienced because we are accustomed to storms, particularly 
hurricanes. But we are not accustomed to 25 inches in 24 hours, and all 
emergency personnel are down there helping.
  According to Florida's request for Federal assistance, in addition to 
the spinoff tornadoes, some parts of the panhandle received this 
enormous amount of rain, and another indication is that in just 1 hour, 
5.68 inches of rain fell--in 1 hour--in the city of Pensacola.
  It brought floods. It destroyed homes, roads. It destroyed essential 
infrastructure. If you have seen any of the views on television, then 
you have seen the devastation, you have seen people being pulled out of 
the water, cars completely submerged, portions of roads taken out. It 
has occurred in multiple States.
  Responding to a disaster such as this is a critical responsibility 
for not only government in general but for the Federal Government and 
the unique things and people and services the Federal Government can 
provide. It is one of those things government is supposed to do for 
people. It is supposed to help in times of emergency. The President has 
already declared a disaster in Arkansas, Mississippi, and Alabama, 
making Federal resources available there. I hope the President is going 
to do the same for Florida. Sometimes challenges are just too great for 
any one local community or State to take on alone. The unique position 
of the Federal Government in a time such as this is to coordinate 
resources and people across the Nation to solve our biggest challenges. 
A lot of that is done through FEMA, and who better to have the help 
ready than the head of FEMA, who is a Floridian and who was the head of 
Florida's emergency department before President Obama tapped him to be 
the head of FEMA.
  With this terrible toll on people's lives, I hope this will serve as 
an example of how we can all come together when people are in need. 
Clearly, our hopes and prayers and thoughts are with the people who are 
affected by these storms.
  I yield the floor and I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. NELSON. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum 
call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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