WASHINGTON, Sept. 14 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump is scheduled to visit Florida Thursday to survey damage caused by Hurricane Irma and learn about relief efforts.
Trump will be joined by First lady Melania Trump, Vice President Mike Pence and his wife Karen Pence. They are expected to visit Fort Myers and Naples on Florida's southwestern coast.
In a tweet Thursday morning, Trump said he is leaving for Florida to meet first responders and Coast Guards, FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency), and others, as they continue to deal with what the president described "a real disaster".
It is the third trip that Trump has made in response to a hurricane striking the southern United States. Earlier, he made two stops in Texas after Hurricane Harvey caused massive, destructive flooding in and around Houston.
The White House said Trump will visit Fort Myers in southwest Florida, one of the hardest-hit areas, for a briefing on Irma before traveling south to Naples to meet with local residents affected by the storm.
Irma, one of the most powerful Atlantic storms on record, has so far killed at least 80 people as it swept through the Caribbean and south Florida.
Authorities said 29 people in Florida, four in Georgia, and three in South Carolina died from the storm and related incidents.
Irma also cut power supply to over 10 million in southern America. Officials said it could take at least 10 days to fully restore power.
Catastrophe modeler Karen Clark & Co estimated Wednesday that the destructive storm has caused about 25 billion U.S. dollars in insured losses, including 18 billion dollars in the United States and 7 billion dollars in the Caribbean.
