Fugate: State's virus response plan allows experts to lead

TAMPA, Fla. - When hurricanes hit, it's the National Weather Service guiding us. But with coronavirus, it's the CDC weathering the storm.

As state officials rush to get the latest COVID-19 updates out to Floridians, the man who's been behind the curtain for some of the state's biggest hurricanes says it looks similar behind the scenes.

"It's an emerging disease, it's just brand new, and they're still discovering new things about this disease," said the former director of Florida's Division of Emergency Management and later the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Craig Fugate. 

"From the standpoint of the emergency management community, we are probably asking a lot of questions that the health departments are still trying to figure out what the best recommendations are." 

Dr. Scott Rivkees announces the first COVID-19 cases in Florida, as Gov. Ron DeSantis and others look on.

With a health crisis like the virus spreading in Florida, the surgeon general becomes the incident commander. In Florida's case, that's Dr. Scott Rivkees. He's already been at the governor's side for several press conferences, much like Fugate was during hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan, and Jeanne.

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Governor Jeb Bush speaking during a 2004 briefing at the state Emergency Operations Center. In the background is W. Craig Fugate, director, Florida Division of Emergency Management. (State Archives of Florida (Bujak))

Fugate says there is a template state officials follow: The State Emergency Management Plan. 

"Our plan, even at the federal level, was that the experts in infectious disease and health would be the lead, and Emergency Management's role would be to support them as well as deal with potential consequences from this," he added. 

While hurricanes cause major disruptions like power outages, Fugate says we could see a similar situation with coronavirus here in Florida when it comes to healthcare facilities needing more assistance.