CAPE CORAL, Fla. — Gov. Ron DeSantis outlined Monday evening the latest recovery efforts in southwest Florida related to Hurricane Ian.
The governor spoke at Historic Cape Coral Pier in Cape Coral.
DeSantis was joined by Florida Department of Emergency Management (FDEM) Director Kevin Guthrie and Department of Economic Opportunity Secretary Dane Eagle.
RELATED: How does Florida report its official Hurricane Ian death toll?
The governor said the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) has begun to implement a temporary bridge over Pine Island, hoping to have it completed by the end of this week.
"Today, more than 130 FDOT trucks deployed to begin working on the temporary bridge fix for Pine Island," DeSantis said. "They're going to be able to get that done relatively quickly."
Watch the news conference below:
He said a similar plan is being put in place for the Sanibel Causeway, which was severed by the storm.
Water restoration efforts continue for homes in Lee County. Guthrie said he hoped to have both water and electricity restored to everyone in the county by next Sunday.
There are currently 42,000 linemen responding to the more than 585,000 reported power outages. DeSantis said Monday that an additional 1,000 linemen would be coming to southwest Florida to help with power restoration.
As of 7 a.m. Monday, the state said more than 1,900 rescues have been made for people impacted by the storm.
The National Guard and the Coast Guard continue to land helicopters on barrier islands to perform search and rescue. About 1,000 National Guard members were sent to the barrier islands to help expedite efforts.
FDEM is coordinating to set up four barges to aid in the delivery of commodities in Lee County to Pine Island and Sanibel Island.
More than 5,200 Florida Guardsmen have been activated to help in the recovery.
The official death toll now stands at 68, according to the Florida Medical Examiners Commission.
State officials laid out a timeline Monday for restoring power across Florida. It will continue to be restored all week— with hard-hit Lee and Collier counties estimated to be 95% restored by Saturday.
FDEM has activated the State Assistance Information Line (SAIL) to provide an additional resource for Floridians to receive up-to-date information regarding Hurricane Ian. Residents and visitors can call this toll-free hotline at 1-800-342-3557.
