Sink: Oil spill ‘like a Category 5 hurricane’
by Michael C. Bender | May 3rd, 2010Florida’s elected CFO, Alex Sink, today called on officials to open emergency loans for Gulf Coast businesses and for the state to create an oil spill task force.
“We must treat this like a Category 5 hurricane — preparing our coastlines for the worst economic and environmental disaster imaginable and quickly ensuring that our businesses and citizens can get the help they will need,” Sink said.
Sink, the leading Democratic candidate for governor, was briefed this morning on the spill at the Escambia County Emergency Operations Center. She will receive an aerial tour of the spill later today, followed by a briefing at the Deepwater Horizon oil spill Unified Command Center in Mobile, Ala. and a press conference at the Florida Emergency Operations Center in Tallahassee at 4:15 p.m.
Here are the steps Sink called for:
• U.S. Small Business Administration should expedite federal disaster loans and temporarily suspend loan repayments. (Letter to SBA Administrator Karen G. Mills)
• Gov. Charlie Crist should activate the Florida Small Business Emergency Loan Program and the Emergency Support Function (ESF) 18, which coordinates local, state and federal efforts for short term assistance. (Letter to Crist)
• The Florida Department of Environmental Protection should create an oil spill environmental task force to analyze and prepare for the environmental consequences of the oil spill. (Letter to DEP and the state Fish & Wildlife Commission)
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