Hurricane Ian made landfall in Florida shortly after 3 p.m. on Wednesday as a Category 4 storm with winds nearing 150 mph.
Ian approached Florida just one day after making landfall in Cuba as a Category 3 hurricane, wreaking havoc on the country and leaving it completely without power due to disruptions to the national electric system. Officials in Florida have warned of similar destruction, with the National Hurricane Center warning of imminent “catastrophic storm surge, winds, and flooding.”
HURRICANE IAN TRACKER UPDATE: LIVE COVERAGE OF POTENTIALLY DEADLY STORM
More than 269,000 Floridians were without power before noon on Wednesday, just hours before Ian made landfall. This number is expected to rise in the coming days.
More than 1,300 federal workers have already arrived in Florida to help with emergency preparations, including “operations, planning, power restoration, debris removal, and urban search and rescue,” the White House said in a statement. President Joe Biden also gave a firm warning to gas companies not to use Hurricane Ian as an excuse to raise prices for Floridians and others affected by the storm.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
#HurricaneIan is making landfall now. Florida is ready to respond. We have fleets of highwater vehicles, 42,000 linemen, 7,000 National Guardsmen and 179 aircraft prepared to help.
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) September 28, 2022
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has also established search and rescue teams that are ready to be deployed by sea, air, and land “as soon as they are needed.” The teams consist of personnel from several federal agencies, including the Coast Guard, the Department of Defense, and the Department of the Interior.
At least 3.7 million meals and 3.5 million liters of water are available to be distributed from staging areas in Alabama, according to the White House.
