SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. – New numbers from a state of Florida business survey show how much of an economic toll the coronavirus is taking on local business, so far.
The ongoing survey is being conducted by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity.
As part of its Business Damage Assessment Survey, the agency is collecting information from businesses, such as how much money they have lost so far, and how many employees they have had to lay off.
Seminole County Chairman Jay Zembower announced the preliminary findings for his area on Wednesday.
He said 258 businesses have responded, so far, reporting a $53 million impact to Seminole County.
Osceola County reports a $26 million dollar impact, so far.
Other counties said they were still waiting for results.
Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings said he's already looking ahead to recovery.
"At some point, we would transition into the recovery phase of our operation, and it would be instrumental to have the business community engage with us," he said.
On Wednesday, President Trump repeated requests to congress to approve $250 billion more in loans and assistance to small business owners.
He said he wanted it approved by the end of the week.
"We want to do this for the small businesses and the workers," he said. "We can do a phase four, and the phase four would be later."
To take part in the Business Damage Assessment Survey, click here.
