- SpaceX is delivering 120 Starlink internet kits to southwest Florida in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian.
- The satellites will help reinstate internet service in regions particularly hard hit by the storm.
Elon Musk's SpaceX will provide satellites to help restore internet services in areas of the state ravaged by Hurricane Ian, the Florida governor announced Saturday.
"Thanks to your innovative technology, Floridians will be able to better connect with their loved ones," Gov. Ron DeSantis wrote on Twitter Saturday, referencing SpaceX's Starlink broadband service, which uses satellite dishes to provide internet.
The effort will deploy more than 100 Starlink internet kits to Southwest Florida, a region particularly hard hit by the storm. As of Sunday morning, more than 865,000 people in the state are still without power, according to the New York Times.
"We are working with Elon Musk and Starlink satellite," DeSantis told reporters on Saturday, per Reuters. "They are positioning those Starlink satellites to provide good coverage in southwest Florida and other affected areas. We are expecting 120 additional large Starlink units to deploy to Southwest Florida."
This isn't the first time SpaceX has lent a hand during a crisis. The company also aided war-torn Ukraine earlier this year, delivering thousands of Starlink satellite kits following Russia's invasion in February.
In June, Musk disclosed that SpaceX had delivered a total of 15,000 Starlink internet kits over the course of three months. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised Musk for helping reinstate internet services to keep citizens informed and stop the spread of Russian propaganda.
"It helped us a lot, in many moments related to the blockade of our cities, towns, and related to the occupied territories," Zelenskyy told Wired.