Hurricane Ian likely killed hundreds after blasting Florida as winds hit 150mph with intense storm surge
PUNTA GORDA, FLORIDA: Counted among the worst of the hurricanes to ever hit Florida, Hurricane Ian is feared to have taken lives of hundreds of people on Wednesday, September 27. It clocked 150mph winds speed, before flooding the entire region across the Sunshine State.
Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno said to Good Morning America, "Thousands of people are waiting to be rescued, I cannot give a true assessment until we are on scene assessing each scene, and we can’t access people that is the problem." He referred to the storm as "a life-changing event" for everyone and "unpredictable."
READ MORE
The officials shared that the team "cannot access many of the people in need" who all are counting on authorities for being rescued. Florida Governor, Ron DeSantis said on Hurricane Ian, “You’re looking at a storm that has changed the character of a significant part of our state. This is going to require years of effort to rebuild." As per official figures, at least two people are reported to have died due to the storm, including a 72-year-old man in Deltona. It is alleged that he went out to drain his pool and slipped into a 30-foot canal, claimed WESH.
The governor further called this massive Category 4 hurricane a "500-year-flood event," as over two million Floridians were left without any power supply. In the dramatic videos, one can see transformers blasting off and power lines severed by the winds.
"Right now, if you look at Central Florida, you're looking at potential major flooding, in Orange, in Seminole counties, St Johns River, all the way up potentially into northeast Florida and Jacksonville," DeSantis updated on Hurricane Ian.
He continued, "The amount of water that’s been rising, and will likely continue to rise today even as the storm is passing, is basically a 500-year flood event. What people should understand is this storm is having broad impacts across the state, and some of the flooding you're going to see in areas hundreds of miles from where this made landfall are going to set records."
DeSantis further warned by saying, “This is going to be a nasty, nasty, two days.” According to the governor, Hurricane Ian can be registered among the top five hurricanes ever to hit the state.
The met department is predicting that the storm surges and gusty winds could further impact Georgia and The Carolinas, as Hurricane Ian makes its exit from the Florida Peninsula.