Relief Now: DeSantis appeals FEMA denial for Iona tornado victims

Feb 21, 2022 By NATHAN MAYBERG 5 min read

Gov. Ron DeSantis was at the Century 21 mobile home park in Fort Myers Friday morning where he called on the Federal Emergency Management Agency to reverse its denial of emergency aid for last month’s tornado damage.

“These things should be above politics,” said DeSantis as he stood with Lee County officials and affected residents on Mercury Way in the Iona neighborhood, one of several affected.

DeSantis said President Joseph Biden was “thumbing its nose” at Florida.

“It is very significant damage,” he said.

Several dozen homes were seriously damaged in the Iona neighborhood, which is an unincorporated area of Lee County in the middle of a triangle between Fort Myers Beach, Fort Myers and Sanibel, off McGregor Boulevard. The clubhouse suffered extensive damage and is closed.

According to FEMA numbers, all told, 158 homes in Lee and Charlotte County suffered major damage or were destroyed and nearly 300 residents were displaced.

DeSantis said Florida had requested individual assistance for those affected by the tornado, and was now appealing FEMA’s denial.

Crystal Paulk-Buchanan, external affairs specialist for FEMA, said “it was determined the damage from this event was not of such severity as to be beyond the capabilities of the state, affected local governments and voluntary agencies. This denial can be appealed within 30 days with any new information to help justify why a declaration would be necessary.”

Paulk-Buchanan didn’t reply to follow-up questions.

DeSantis had been asked at a press conference Monday if there were any funds the state has to help out the residents impacted by the tornado.

“If there are things that we can do, we want to be helpful,” DeSantis said. “But I think the thing is this (FEMA) individual assistance program is a codified program. You follow, there is eligibility, people can get the money and it’s kind of all above-board and that’s what states have relied on for years and years and years. That is the best way to get these folks relief.”

If there are other avenues of assistance, DeSantis said he wants the director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management to be “exhausting those avenues.”

Anthony Costalas, a resident of the mobile home park whose roof remained covered by a tarp, said he and his wife Ellie have been staying with a friendly neighbor since the tornado.

Ellie Costalas said “we were very much devastated when this happened.” Ellie thanked the Lee County Sheriff’s Office for providing a sense of protection and security at the park in the aftermath.

“A lot of damage,” Mrs. Costalas said. From the roof, to the siding and shed and water problems, loss of furniture, decorations, photos were damaged or destroyed, she said.

Keepsakes, including a jade elephant were destroyed.

Windows were blown out.

“Gusts of wind threw us,” Mrs. Costalas said. “We have holes in these windows the size of basketballs.”

Luckily, they weren’t injured and their dog was safe.

Mr. Costalas said he was thankful for the work done by government agencies to clean up after the tornado. A native of the Philadelphia area, Mrs. Costalas said they have been helped by their insurance company though not at the full value of the home and they will have to pay a deductible of several thousand dollars.

“Our kids are helping us. We have to use our savings,” Mrs. Costalas said.

Mr. Costalas said President Biden needs to come through for the residents.

“I hope they can speed it up,” Mrs. Costalas said.

Mrs. Costalas said they were helped by the American Red Cross.

“They were here every day with food, coffee, drinks for everybody. They gave us a gift card to use,” she said.

Edward Murray, whose home was overturned in nearby Cottage Point Trailer Park, said the loss of his home was the most frightening experience of his life. He couldn’t find his dog for about seven hours.

“To have some government agency tell you it’s not a tragedy, 22 years of memories, your children, your pets all endangered, this has got to be wrong. There is something definitely wrong with the logic in Washington D.C. We the people have got to stand up for our rights,” Murray said.

DeSantis said the mobile home park community was “a more vulnerable population. Almost all senior citizens, 84% are receiving Social Security, (for) many of the residents Social Security is their sole source of income, they are still cleaning up debris, people are still trying to find stable housing, you know people have gotten into rental units. Some people are staying with friends. It’s not that easy to just pick up and move to a new home particularly in a state like Florida where there is a lot of demand for this. Also, you look at all the inflation that we’ve seen. Stuff is a lot more expensive.”

DeSantis said the Florida Division of Emergency Management directed staff to the areas hit by the tornado as soon as the tornadoes hit. DeSantis said the state requested all individual assistance programs through FEMA to provide relief to the communities.

That request was denied.

“We need to remain committed to helping the people of Lee and Charlotte counties,” DeSantis said. “We need more assistance.”

Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno said his thoughts and prayers are with the community. Marceno said he and his team responded within minutes to the tornado.

“Their lives were turned upside down,” he said. “You couldn’t walk. There were electrical lines down. To say it was devastating is an understatement,” Marceno said.

To reach NATHAN MAYBERG, please email nmayberg@breezenewspapers.com