LYNN HAVEN, Fla. (WMBB) – Hurricane Ian made landfall in Ft. Myers Thursday and local first responders are already on their way south to help victims.
Several fire departments have formed a strike team to respond to the disaster.
Panama City, Panama City Beach, Navarre, South Walton, and Lynn Haven are each contributing personnel. They all met in Chipley this afternoon before heading to the impacted areas.
Lynn Haven Chief John DeLonjay said they’ll travel to Lake City, then wait for the State Emergency Operations Center to deploy them to a specific location.
DeLonjay said many of the team members were impacted by Hurricane Michael and remember other cities sending them help 4 years ago.
“Basically what we’re doing is we’re paying this back to all the folks that came and helped us during Hurricane Michael,” DeLonjay said. “We understand what they’re going through and it’s such a relief when they have assets that come in and to be able to give your men and women a break from their normal shifts.”
The team will be gone for seven to ten days. After ten days they’ll begin to rotate with fresh replacements, if necessary.