Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis lashed out at climate radicals and argued that politicizing natural disasters and the climate must stop. The statements were made in reference to the damage recently caused by Hurricane Idalia.
"There was a storm that went on this almost exact track in 1896, and it had 125-mile-an-hour winds," DeSantis explained during a press conference in which he was asked about how Joe Biden and the corporate media blame climate change for hurricanes like Idalia.
NEW: DeSantis scathes blaming climate change for #Idalia, saying the most powerful storm for Florida was in 1935
“The notion that we just adopt very left wing policies at the federal level, that somehow we will not have hurricanes - that is a lie." pic.twitter.com/iCOO8nynGD
— Florida’s Voice (@FLVoiceNews) September 4, 2023
He recalled that there have been several hurricanes in the country's history and commented that many current-day activists use the climate to advance a political agenda. He stressed that he will not allow that to happen in Florida.
"The notion that somehow if we just adopt very left-wing policies at the federal level, that somehow we will not have hurricanes, that is a lie. And that is people trying to take what’s happened with different types of storms and use that as a pretext to advance their agenda on the backs of people that are suffering – and that’s wrong," DeSantis said.
The effects of Hurricane Idalia
Hurricane Idalia caused damage that could cost from $12-$20 billion. However, the cost will not be as high as that of other major hurricanes. This was reflected in a report by Moody's Analytics that was reviewed by CNN Business. The hurricane left at least two dead.
For context, Hurricane Ian, which made landfall in Western Florida last year as a Category 4 storm, caused an estimated $112.9 billion of total damage in the United States, according to the National Hurricane Center. That made it the third-costliest U.S. hurricane on record," CNN explained.
The 1896 hurricane DeSantis referenced in his response made landfall in the Big Bend region of Florida with winds of 125 mph. It resulted in around 100 deaths. "The Labor Day Hurricane of 1935 reportedly killed around 408 people in the Florida Keys. Winds were sustained anywhere from 150mph to 200 mph, a strong Category 5 storm, and some gusts even reaching 250 mph," Florida's Voice explained.
