Offices for state of Florida to close in 51 counties at noon on Thursday, Sept. 1, 2016

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Today, in preparation for Tropical Storm Hermine, Governor Rick Scott directed all state offices in 51 counties to close on Thursday, September 1st. at noon.  Decisions regarding Friday, September 2nd will be made after further weather updates. All of these counties are under the Governor’s Executive Orders signed yesterday.  To view Executive Order 16-206, click HERE and to view Executive Order 16-205, click HERE.

Governor Scott said, “Today, in preparation for Tropical Storm Hermine, I have ordered the closure of state offices and buildings in 51 counties at noon. Our employees work very hard and their safety is of the upmost importance. Our State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) and State Emergency Response Team (SERT) are in constant communication with local communities and stand ready to respond to any impacts. As we prepare for this storm to impact Florida, I will be at the SEOC in Tallahassee to closely monitor the storm’s development and will continue to provide regular updates on Tropical Storm Hermine and the state’s preparedness efforts.”

As of now, state offices will be closed in the following counties:

ALACHUA, BAKER, BAY, BRADFORD, BREVARD, CALHOUN, CITRUS, CLAY, COLUMBIA, DIXIE, DUVAL, ESCAMBIA, FLAGLER, FRANKLIN, GADSDEN, GILCHRIST, GULF, HAMILTON, HERNANDO, HILLSBOROUGH, HOLMES, JACKSON, JEFFERSON, LAFAYETTE, LAKE, LEON, LEVY, LIBERTY, MADISON, MANATEE, MARION, NASSAU, OKALOOSA, ORANGE, OSCEOLA, PASCO, PINELLAS, POLK, PUTNAM, SANTA ROSA, SARASOTA, SEMINOLE, ST. JOHNS, SUMTER, SUWANNEE, TAYLOR, UNION, VOLUSIA, WAKULLA, WALTON, AND WASHINGTON

The Florida Division of Emergency Management is the state agency charged with preparing for all types of disasters in Florida. The Division is the state's disaster liaison with federal and local agencies, and is the lead consequence management agency for the State Emergency Response Team (SERT). The Division maintains the State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) in Tallahassee and the State Watch Office, the 24-hour communications and command center for response coordination. Follow the Division on social media at facebook.com/FloridaSERT or on Twitter @FLSERT.