By Michelle Ewing and Theresa Seiger, Cox Media Group National Content Desk
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden visited southwest Florida on Wednesday, one week after Hurricane Ian made landfall near Cayo Costa as a deadly Category 4 storm.
Update 3:25 p.m. EDT Oct. 5: President Joe Biden on Wednesday vowed that the federal government would continue to support Florida throughout it’s recovery.
“You walk around here, what’s left of Fisherman’s Wharf, and you don’t have to have much of an imagination to understand that everything — everything — this historic, titanic and unimaginable storm just ripped it to pieces,” Biden said after touring areas damaged by the storm.
“It’s going to take a lot of time — not weeks or months, it’s going to take years for everything to get squared away in the state of Florida, to fully recover and rebuild.”
Update 3:20 p.m. EDT Oct. 5: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis thanked federal officials for their responsiveness as the state recovers from Hurricane Ian and called ongoing operations “a team effort.”
“I think we’ve worked as well across state, local, and federal of any disaster that I’ve seen,” the governor said. “One of the things that you’re seeing in this response — we are cutting through the bureaucracy. We are cutting through the red tape. And that’s from local government, state government, all the way up to the president.”
He spoke after meeting with President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden to visit people affected by last week’s storm.
Update 3:15 p.m. EDT Oct. 5: Video showed President Joe Biden meeting Wednesday with Floridians affected by the devastation caused by Hurricane Ian.
Update 2:25 p.m. EDT Oct. 5: The Bidens are meeting with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and first lady Casey DeSantis after they viewed areas damaged last week by Hurricane Ian.
Update 12:55 p.m. EDT Oct. 5: The Bidens arrived in Florida on Wednesday afternoon to begin a survey of areas ravaged by Hurricane Ian.
The president and first lady will see the damage from a helicopter before getting an operational briefing from officials coordinating the response and recovery efforts. Later, the couple will meet small business owners and residents impacted by the storm.
The president is scheduled to deliver remarks at 3:15 p.m.
Original report: According to the president’s public schedule, the pair will visit Fort Myers, where they will tour the damage by helicopter; receive an operational briefing from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and other area officials; and meet with small-business owners and residents. Biden also will deliver remarks and “thank the federal, state and local officials working around the clock to provide lifesaving assistance, restore power, distribute food and water, remove debris and begin rebuilding efforts,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters Tuesday.
Although Biden, a Democrat, and DeSantis, a Republican, have recently sparred over issues such as immigration policy, Jean-Pierre said Biden intends for Wednesday’s visit to be a show of unity, according to The Associated Press.
“There will be plenty of times – plenty of time – to discuss differences between the president and the governor, but now is not the time,” Jean-Pierre said. “As you’ve heard from the president, he has said when it comes to delivering and making sure that the people of Florida have what they need – especially after Hurricane Ian – we are one. We are working as one.”
DeSantis, meanwhile, praised the Federal Emergency Management Agency for its swift emergency declaration, the AP reported.
“That was huge because everyone was full steam ahead,” DeSantis told reporters Tuesday. “They knew they had the ability to do it. We appreciate it. I think FEMA’s worked very well with the state and local (officials).”
At least 75 deaths in Florida have been attributed to Hurricane Ian, which brought devastating winds and storm surge to the state’s southwest coast and flooded inland communities, according to the AP. PowerOutage.us reported early Wednesday that more than 323,000 Florida customers remain without power after the storm, which initially knocked out service to 2.6 million.
Photos: Days after Hurricane Ian, inland Florida still reeling from floods National Guardsmen transport meals ready-to-eat to a community cut off by flooding in the wake of Hurricane Ian near the Peace River on October 4, 2022, in Arcadia, Florida. Fifty miles inland, and nearly a week after Hurricane Ian made landfall on the Gulf Coast of Florida, the record-breaking floodwaters in the area are receding to reveal the full effects of the storm. (Sean Rayford/Getty Images)
Photos: Days after Hurricane Ian, inland Florida still reeling from floods Travel trailers are inundated by floodwaters at the Peace River Campground on October 4, 2022, in Arcadia, Florida. Fifty miles inland, and nearly a week after Hurricane Ian made landfall on the Gulf Coast of Florida, the record-breaking floodwaters in the area are receding to reveal the full effects of the storm. (Sean Rayford/Getty Images)
Photos: Days after Hurricane Ian, inland Florida still reeling from floods Mack Martin walks along train tracks surrounded by floodwaters at the Peace River on October 4, 2022, in Arcadia, Florida. Fifty miles inland, and nearly a week after Hurricane Ian made landfall on the Gulf Coast of Florida, the record-breaking floodwaters in the area are receding to reveal the full effects of the storm. (Sean Rayford/Getty Images)
Photos: Days after Hurricane Ian, inland Florida still reeling from floods An Okeechobee County sheriff's deputy watches a tractor-trailer drive down a flooded street to reach a community cutoff of by floodwaters from the Peace River in the wake of Hurricane Ian on October 4, 2022, in Arcadia, Florida. Fifty miles inland, and nearly a week after Hurricane Ian made landfall on the Gulf Coast of Florida, the record-breaking floodwaters in the area are receding to reveal the full effects of the storm. (Sean Rayford/Getty Images)
Photos: Days after Hurricane Ian, inland Florida still reeling from floods People ride on an airboat along Peace River in the wake of Hurricane Ian on October 4, 2022, in Arcadia, Florida. Fifty miles inland, and nearly a week after Hurricane Ian made landfall on the Gulf Coast of Florida, the record-breaking floodwaters in the area are receding to reveal the full effects of the storm. (Sean Rayford/Getty Images)
Photos: Days after Hurricane Ian, inland Florida still reeling from floods People walk along a road closed to vehicle traffic due to flooding from the Peace River in the wake of Hurricane Ian on October 4, 2022, in Arcadia, Florida. Fifty miles inland, and nearly a week after Hurricane Ian made landfall on the Gulf Coast of Florida, the record-breaking floodwaters in the area are receding to reveal the full effects of the storm. (Sean Rayford/Getty Images)
Photos: Days after Hurricane Ian, inland Florida still reeling from floods A Peace River campground is shown flooded in the wake of Hurricane Ian on October 4, 2022, in Arcadia, Florida. Fifty miles inland, and nearly a week after Hurricane Ian made landfall on the Gulf Coast of Florida, the record-breaking floodwaters in the area are receding to reveal the full effects of the storm. (Sean Rayford/Getty Images)
Photos: Days after Hurricane Ian, inland Florida still reeling from floods An ice and water machine sits in floodwaters in the wake of Hurricane Ian at the Peace River Campground on October 4, 2022, in Arcadia, Florida. Fifty miles inland, and nearly a week after Hurricane Ian made landfall on the Gulf Coast of Florida, the record-breaking floodwaters in the area are receding to reveal the full effects of the storm. (Sean Rayford/Getty Images)
Photos: Days after Hurricane Ian, inland Florida still reeling from floods National Guardsmen move cases of water near a flooded road in the wake of Hurricane Ian near the Peace River on October 4, 2022, in Arcadia, Florida. Fifty miles inland, and nearly a week after Hurricane Ian made landfall on the Gulf Coast of Florida, the record-breaking floodwaters in the area are receding to reveal the full effects of the storm. (Sean Rayford/Getty Images)
Photos: Days after Hurricane Ian, inland Florida still reeling from floods Utility trucks line up at a road block due to flooding from the Peace River in the wake of Hurricane Ian on October 4, 2022, in Arcadia, Florida. Fifty miles inland, and nearly a week after Hurricane Ian made landfall on the Gulf Coast of Florida, the record-breaking floodwaters in the area are receding to reveal the full effects of the storm. (Sean Rayford/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian Members of Florida Army National Guard arrive on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents are being encouraged to leave because the only road onto the island is impassable and electricity and water remain knocked out after Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian Francis Gersic is evacuated by a Florida Army National Guard chinook on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents are being encouraged to leave because the only road onto the island is impassable and electricity and water remain knocked out after Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian A Florida Army National Guard helicopter prepares to land as Madeline Thayer walks to an evacuation center on the island on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents are being encouraged to leave because the only road onto the island is impassable and electricity and water remain knocked out after Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian A Florida Army National Guard chinook lands to deliver supplies and evacuate residents on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents of the island are being encouraged to leave due to the only road onto the island was made impassable and the electricity and water were knocked out when Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian A Florida Army National Guard helicopter lifts off as they evacuate residents on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents are being encouraged to leave because the only road onto the island is impassable and electricity and water remain knocked out after Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian Residents are driven to where they will be evacuated by boat on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents are being encouraged to leave because the only road onto the island is impassable and electricity and water remain knocked out after Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian Residents are evacuated from the island by boat on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents are being encouraged to leave because the only road onto the island is impassable and electricity and water remain knocked out after Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian Residents make their way to a boat to be evacuate from the island on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents are being encouraged to leave because the only road onto the island is impassable and electricity and water remain knocked out after Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian Residents are evacuated from the island by boats on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents are being encouraged to leave because the only road onto the island is impassable and electricity and water remain knocked out after Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian Search and Rescue personnel ride in be back of a truck on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents are being encouraged to leave because the only road onto the island is impassable and electricity and water remain knocked out after Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian Dr. Karen Calkins (left) and Ricki Jackson help Ced Franklin onto a bus to be driven to an evacuation boat on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents are being encouraged to leave because the only road onto the island is impassable and electricity and water remain knocked out after Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian Catherine Bhinder is helped out of a truck as she arrives at an evacuation center on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents are being encouraged to leave because the only road onto the island is impassable and electricity and water remain knocked out after Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian Ricki Jackson sits with Ced Franklin (left) before she boards a bus to be driven to an evacuation boat on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents are being encouraged to leave because the only road onto the island is impassable and electricity and water remain knocked out after Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian Tom O'Sullivan and his dog Jack look on as a Florida National Guard chinook lands as they prepare to be evacuated on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents are being encouraged to leave because the only road onto the island is impassable and electricity and water remain knocked out after Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian Joann Vollmar (left) and Frank Vollmar walk along a dock after being evacuated on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents are being encouraged to leave because the only road onto the island is impassable and electricity and water remain knocked out after Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian Residents are evacuated from the island by boats on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents are being encouraged to leave because the only road onto the island is impassable and electricity and water remain knocked out after Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian Tom O'Sullivan his dog Jack and Harry Marquard prepare to be evacuated in a Florida Army National Guard helicopter on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents are being encouraged to leave because the only road onto the island is impassable and electricity and water remain knocked out after Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian Tom O'Sullivan along with his dog, Jack, and Harry Marquard prepare to be evacuated in a Florida Army National Guard helicopter on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents of the island are being encouraged to leave because the only road onto the island is impassable and electricity and water remain knocked out after Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian Residents make their way to a boat to be evacuate from the island on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents of the island are being encouraged to leave because the only road onto the island is impassable and electricity and water remain knocked out after Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photos: Rescues, evacuations continue in Florida after Hurricane Ian Florida Army National Guard members unload supplies from a helicopter on October 2, 2022, in Pine Island, Florida. Residents of the island are being encouraged to leave because the only road onto the island is impassable and electricity and water remain knocked out after Hurricane Ian passed through the area. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)