'Building back stronger': President Biden in Tampa for Hurricane Milton's impact

President Joe Biden arrived in Tampa Sunday morning to speak on the aftermath of Hurricane Milton.

President Joe Biden in Tampa sharing remarks on the aftermath of Hurricane Milton

This is the second time President Biden is in Florida within two weeks to survey the damage of another catastrophic storm.

The Biden-Harris administration is granting $612 million for Hurricane Milton recovery efforts.

You can watch the full remarks by President Biden and Florida officials here

President Joe Biden in Tampa surveying the damage of Hurricane Milton

In his remarks on Sunday morning, he said $47 million would also be granted for Gainesville utilities and another $47 million towards Florida power and light.

He said this money aims to make the grid stronger and more capable for future storms.

That’s the resilience of people in West Florida. I want to thank them. The American people should know the sacrifices they are making.

Secretary of Energy, Jennifer Granholm, said 75% of power is restored and the state aims to have most of the power back up by Tuesday.

St. Pete Beach Mayor, Adrian Petrila, was also there. He said the state can emerge stronger than ever before and he is confident that collectively, impacted areas can and will rebuild.

Commissioner Kathleen Peters, who was elected to Pinellas County in 2018, said:

This is a storm we will never forget, but it will make us stronger than ever.

The President also took an aerial tour of "affected areas" this morning including Tropicana Field where he said thankfully, not many people were hurt.

Aerial footage showing the impact Hurricane Milton had on the bay.

He spoke to homeowners and business owners who said they are heartbroken, exhausted and worried about expenses piling up.

If you need any help after the disaster, President Biden said a great resource is through this link .

With thousands still without power in South Florida, TECO is continuing to work day and night on getting the lights back on. "We know how frustrating it is, how inconvenient it is not to have power, and so the team is really committed to the cause," says CEO Archie Collins.

TECO asks for patience as thousands still wait for power to come back on

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