TALLAHASSEE, Florida — Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis said Thursday that most of the remaining 9,000 customers without power in Florida are in the Big Bend area. But a few thousand more in Pinellas County may be unaccounted for because of state and utility reporting methods.
DeSantis said in Anna Maria Island that power had been restored to 2.4 million people since Hurricane Helene came ashore in the Big Bend’s Taylor County last Thursday. Of the customers without power, he said 8,800 are with electric cooperatives in the Big Bend.
“This is the fastest power restoration after a major hurricane that we have ever had,” DeSantis said.
Power for the vast majority of Florida residents has indeed already been restored. But Duke Energy Florida said Thursday there are still 5,500 customers without electricity in hard-hit Pinellas County, where storm surge flooded coastal homes on barrier islands and knocked out power.
