Florida tells Missouri that National Guard assistance ‘no longer required’

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A day after Gov. Mike Parson ordered 100 Missouri National Guard members to assist in relief efforts in Florida for Hurricane Milton, the state of Florida informed the governor that Missouri’s assistance is “no longer required.”

A Thursday press release from Parson’s office says that the Florida Division of Emergency Management said the past “24 hours were not as dire as had been expected and that the state believed it was able to meet its needs with resources already available within the state.”

Parson had also dispatched 15 Missouri State Highway Patrol troopers, “six civilians with the technical expertise, equipment, and supplies,” and five SEMA members. None of those people or the National Guardsmen were traveling to Florida when the state made its announcement, the release says.

Thursday’s release says that a Missouri State Emergency Management Agency SEMA specialist in donations and volunteer management will be deploying to Florida in response to a separate EMAC request.  

"While Missouri was ready and willing to assist our fellow Americans in Florida, we are relieved that Hurricane Milton proved to be less destructive than previously expected and that the State of Florida already has the necessary resources to respond," Parson said in the release. 

The City of Columbia said earlier on Thursday that six of its utility workers would be heading to Florida.