Project Dynamo walks back criticism of Florida’s role in Israel evacuation hiccups

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Project Dynamo, the organization the State of Florida has worked with to evacuate Americans from Israel in the wake of the Hamas terrorist attack, is walking back statements reportedly made by its CEO suggesting the state’s intervention has complicated the evacuation efforts.

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After the first major evacuation facilitated by the State of Florida and Project Dynamo of roughly 270 Americans from Israel, Project Dynamo CEO Bryan Stern sang the praises of Governor Ron DeSantis.

“This is the first time where number one, any government agency has assisted us financially. The State of Florida paid for the plane, but more importantly that had the courtesy, if you will, and the patriotism to welcome Americans home,” said Stern during a virtual press conference earlier this month.

But a new report from the Orlando Sentinel suggests Stern has changed his tune.

The article claims dozens of evacuees were stuck in Cyprus for multiple days while awaiting final passage to the US and Stern blamed Florida for a number of issues during the evacuation effort.

The article attributes this line to Stern: “Their rush to help DeSantis score political points for his presidential campaign caused the confusion.”

But Project Dynamo quickly attempted to walk that back.

“We were quoted out of context and want to express our deep appreciation for Governor DeSantis and his swift decision to help save Americans,” Project Dynamo said in a post on social media.

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The state has responded defending its role in the evacuation effort.“We were quoted out of context and want to express our deep appreciation for Governor DeSantis and his swift decision to help save Americans,” Project Dynamo said in a post on social media.“We were quoted out of context and want to express our deep appreciation for Governor DeSantis and his swift decision to help save Americans,” Project Dynamo said in a post on social media.

“As far as we know, this is the only time in history that a state stepped up to evacuate American citizens from a war zone due to the federal government’s failure. We are proud of this work. While we always look at our operations to determine best practices, we will review these international rescue operations after this activation,” said a spokesperson for the Florida Division of Emergency Management in an emailed statement.

State Representative Randy Fine (R-Palm Bay), one of the most outspoken supporters of Israel in the Florida Legislature, argued at the end of the day, the operation has brought more than 500 Americans home and that outweighs any hiccups that may have been encountered.

“None of those people who have gotten on those planes were forced to get on them. That was an option that was made available to them and they took advantage of it. So, I don’t think you can fault the Governor for again, funding this nonprofit so that they could get Americans out of Israel,” said Fine.

Action News Jax reached out to Project Dynamo for further clarification of its CEO’s comments but didn’t hear back in time for this story.

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