Hurricane Ian has already hit landfall. With the damage that has been done, Florida needs our help. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has provided a regional emergency declaration because of the catastrophic events of Hurricane Ian.
On Wednesday, September 28, 2022, the FMCSA stated response to Hurricane Ian “in response to Hurricane Ian and the current and anticipated effects on people and property, including an immediate threat to human life or public welfare from heavy rains, high surf, flooding, and strong winds.” Eight states are included in the emergency declaration: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.
During this time, the emergency declaration relieves some requirements of maximum driving for property-carrying trucks and maximum driving for passenger-carrying trucks. This relief also applies to vehicles providing direct assistance for emergency relief efforts that are transporting goods, supplies, equipment, and fuel to those affected states and those transporting people to and from those states.
The FMCSA says that “direct assistance” means “transportation and other relief services provided by a motor carrier or its driver(s) incident to the immediate restoration of essential supplies or essential services. Direct assistance does not include transportation related to long-term rehabilitation of damaged physical infrastructure or standard commercial deliveries, including mixed loads with a normal quantity of qualifying emergency relief added to obtain the benefits of this emergency declaration after the initial threat to life and property has passed.”
The emergency declaration goes into effect immediately and will stay in effect until the end of the emergency or until 11:59 p.m. (ET), October 28, 2022, or whichever is earlier.