Flags in Florida will fly at half-staff until Saturday in honor of Pope Francis, who died Monday at 88.
Gov. Ron DeSantis ordered the flags of the United States and Florida to be lowered in accordance with a proclamation from President Donald Trump.
The Governor’s order specifies that Florida’s flags must be flown at half-staff at all local and state buildings, installations and grounds throughout the state until sunset Saturday.
“As a mark of respect for the memory of His Holiness Pope Francis, by the authority vested in me as President of the United States by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, I hereby order that the flag of the United States shall be flown at half-staff at the White House and upon all public buildings and grounds, at all military posts and naval stations, and on all naval vessels of the Federal Government in the District of Columbia and throughout the United States and its Territories and possessions until sunset, on the day of interment,” the proclamation reads.
“I also direct that the flag shall be flown at half-staff for the same length of time at all United States embassies, legations, consular offices, and other facilities abroad, including all military facilities and naval vessels and stations.”
Pope Francis, history’s first Latin American pontiff who charmed the world with his humble style and concern for the poor but alienated conservatives with critiques of capitalism and climate change, died at 7:35 a.m. Monday, according to Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the Vatican camerlengo.
Bells tolled in church towers across Rome after the announcement.
Francis, who suffered from chronic lung disease and had part of one lung removed as a young man, was admitted to Gemelli hospital on Feb. 14, 2025, for a respiratory crisis that developed into double pneumonia. He spent 38 days there, the longest hospitalization of his 12-year papacy.
The Pope’s body will lie in a state of wait at St. Peter’s Basilica from Wednesday to Friday evening, allowing the public to pay their respects. His funeral mass is on Saturday in St. Peter’s Square, Vatican City, after which his body will be transferred to the Basilica of St. Mary major in Rome for burial.
He will be the first Pope in more than a century to be buried outside the Vatican, honoring his request for a simpler, humbler resting place. He also chose to forgo the traditional triple coffin, opting instead for a basic casket lined with zinc.
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Material from The Associated Press was used in this report. Republished with permission.
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