FEMA

Gov. Ron DeSantis announced more Hurricane Michael recovery assistance is coming to rural communities across the Panhandle on Thursday.

FEMA says its new rates better reflect the risk from more intense and frequent rain and floods. The increase could make housing unaffordable for some in the most flood-prone areas.

Three years after Hurricane Michael devastated Panama City, signs of recovery are evident. Both residents and Panama City mayor Greg Brudnicki are praising the improvements.

Risk Rating 2.0 is the first major change to the National Flood Insurance Program since the 1970s.

Risk Rating 2.0 is the first major change to the National Flood Insurance Program since the 1970s.

Risk Rating 2.0 is the first change to the way the National Flood Insurance Program calculates premiums since the 1970s and represents the biggest shift since the program was founded in the 1960s.

The updated Pinellas County maps are the result of a coastal flood risk study started in 2012 and under review since 2018.

FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell took over the agency in April, just before another above average hurricane season forecast and the start of another record wildfire season.

The funds will help cover road repair costs, among other efforts.

In the greater Tampa Bay region, many vaccination sites have already administered their last shots. Most of the remaining state and county facilities are slated to close in the next few weeks.

Only slightly more first doses of Pfizer were administered at the FEMA-run vaccination sites on Monday than single-dose Johnson & Johnson shots.

Florida's FEMA hubs resumed giving the one-shot vaccine after a federal pause was lifted. The Orlando site said about 90% of the daily supply went unused. A similar story played out in Miami and Tampa.