As a still reeling Florida braces for the impact of Hurricane Milton, the U.S. government’s main disaster response arm, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), is working to provide relief amid back-to-back storms.

Milton strengthened to a Category 5 storm on Monday as it focused on the west coast of Florida, but is expected to make landfall as a Category 3 hurricane Wednesday evening or early Thursday morning.

Hurricane watches are in effect in Tampa, Sarasota, Fort Myers, Naples and Orlando.

Late last month, Hurricane Helene made landfall in the Big Bend region of Flordia, leaving a 500-mile path of destruction from Florida through the southern Appalachians that was nothing short of catastrophic.

While officials warn of the dangers Hurricane Milton is expected to cause as a result of Helene’s damage, understanding the role FEMA does and does not play in disaster response can help reduce misinformation as the organization works on response efforts.

What does FEMA do?

FEMA works to provide relief to people in affected areas before, during and after disasters by providing funding, technical assistance and guidance, according to the agency.

Former President Jimmy Carter signed an executive order in 1979 to create FEMA, and it is headquartered in Washington, D.C.

FEMA is working with affected states to coordinate resources and provide public assistance to cover the costs of debris removal, life-saving emergency protective procedures, and restoring public infrastructure.

FEMA also provides federal grants to victims to help them with temporary housing, emergency home repairs, loss of personal property, and funeral and medical expenses, among other expenses.

However, the federal agency is not solely responsible for the disaster response and recovery process, according to Joshua Dozor, who worked for FEMA for more than a decade and most recently served as deputy assistant administrator for response operations.

“FEMA is a small agency – it’s not an army with trucks,” Dozor told ABC News.

Dozor described the branch more as an “enabler” for disaster response, saying, “FEMA coordinates resources among departments and agencies, nongovernmental organizations and contractors, to help the state take the lead role in delivering the response.”

In the wake of the damage caused by Hurricane Helene, the agency has faced a wave of criticism and misinformation about its response; however, the agency reports that millions in assistance have been provided as efforts continue.

Federal assistance from FEMA for affected Helene survivors totaled more than $137 million as of Sunday, according to the agency.

FEMA has shipped more than 14.9 million meals, more than 13.9 million gallons of water, 157 generators and more than 505,000 tarps to the region, the agency said.

“You’ll see FEMA at the critical coordination nodes, you’ll see them in the field operations centers, you’ll see them in the state operations center, you’ll see them in the key hospitals – but they won’t be FEMA, so to speak -wearing hats,” Dozor said.

Is FEMA out of money?

As part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, FEMA uses an operating budget and a disaster relief fund that Congress replenishes annually.

In September, FEMA’s disaster relief fund received $20 billion, the same amount provided by Congress last year. However, approximately $8 billion has been set aside for past storm recovery and mitigation projects.

“We have the resources we need to treat Helene and Milton at the same time; no one should worry about FEMA losing resources,” said Keith Turi, FEMA’s acting deputy administrator for response and recovery, during an interview on ABC News. Live Monday.

Will help from Helene’s survivors be diverted to Milton?

Turi assured that funding for Helene’s response in the Southeast will not be affected by the fallout from Milton.

“We continue to actively support North Carolina, Georgia, South Carolina, Florida, Virginia and Tennessee in the response to Helene, and we will not divert necessary human resources from these ongoing responses,” he said.

Will households receive more than $750 in assistance?

As recovery efforts continue, individuals who applied for direct relief payments from FEMA received an initial grant of $750 from the organization; However, this is not the total amount that will be allocated to those affected.

That number, which is designated by Congress and not the Biden administration, comes from FEMA’s Serious Needs Assistance program and is intended to help survivors pay for costs associated with a disaster, such as food, water, baby food and other emergency supplies.

However, FEMA assistance will not fully restore the destroyed homes to their original condition. The maximum amount a household can receive from the agency to rebuild is $42,500.

For more information about misinformation surrounding FEMA’s disaster response, visit the agency’s Hurricane Helene: Rumor Response page.