With more than 115,000 acres of Florida up in flames, Gov. Rick Scott on Monday issued an executive order suspending rules and consolidating authority within the division of emergency management to deal with more than 300 wildfires raging across the tinder-dry state.
The executive order calls on agency heads to allow qualified employees to volunteer for Red Cross service, relaxes rules and permitting requirements while opening the door for additional out of state assistance should the situation require.
Continued drought conditions over much of the state raised the hazard for wildfire, with several large fires burning from Miami-Dade County to the Florida/Georgia border.
