Governor Ron DeSantis is taking action just one day after he warned a nationwide dockworker strike could slow the flow of supplies into Florida for hurricane recovery.
The governor Thursday ordered the Florida National and State Guards to all ports affected by the shutdown, to maintain order and resume operations.
“At my direction, the Florida National Guard and Florida State Guard will be deployed to critical ports," said DeSantis. "Florida Department of Transportation is coordinating calls with seaport, rail and trucking partners to ensure that all are prepared and positioned appropriately to limit disruptions to the supply chain and other areas."
He’s also waived tolls and size and weight requirements for commercial vehicles entering Florida with supplies.
And he encouraged any ships that need a port of entry, and are otherwise stranded due to the strike, to make their way to Florida.
“Florida is open. We want to use our resources to be able to get all this stuff to the market so that people are able to use it. We have 16 different deep water seaports. We will work with you to get critical commodities to shore and promptly plugged into the supply chain,” said DeSantis.
Watch Governor Ron DeSantis discuss his executive action regarding the dockworker strikes in Florida:
President Biden has already said he won’t intervene with a dockworker strike, expected to impact 14 ports throughout the US.
In Florida, affected ports include PortMiami, Port Everglades, Port Tampa Bay, and JAXPORT.
The standoff between the 45,000 workers and the U.S. Maritime Alliance is over wages and the use of automation. Little progress was made ahead of the strikes.
Hurricane recovery efforts continue in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and Tennessee.
Operation Blue Ridge has continued rescue missions in North Carolina. If you need to request a rescue, click here.
If you need help after the storm, call Hope Florida at 833-GET-HOPE or click here.
If you’d like to donate money or time, to help the victims, check out this list of ways to give.
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