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HHS Sends Help For Post-Irma Health Emergencies

Leon County Judge John Cooper on June 30, 2022, in a screen grab from The Florida Channel.
Daylina Miller/Health News Florida
/
The Florida Channel
Leon County Judge John Cooper on June 30, 2022, in a screen grab from The Florida Channel.

The U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services has sent more than 700 employees to treat medical emergencies in areas impacted by Hurricane Irma.

HHS Secretary Thomas Price visited Marathon in the hard-hit Florida Keys with Gov. Rick Scott on Monday. Price said he worried about problems polluted waters and carbon-monoxide poisoning may cause for people returning to the island chain.

Residents were allowed to return throughout the Keys on Sunday, a week after Irma struck.

Monroe County's director of emergency management, Martin Senterfitt, says initial estimates show 20 percent of Florida Keys homes "are not livable right now."

In a tweet Monday morning, Monroe County officials said more than 19,000 Keys households have registered for disaster assistance with the Federal Emergency Management Agency.