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After Hurricane Ian swept through Florida on Thursday, the storm left millions without power, and officials are predicting there may be hundreds of fatalities.
HURRICANE IAN: MONSTER STORM MAKES LANDFALL AS CATEGORY 4 STORM WITH WINDS NEAR 150 MPH
“Fatalities are in the hundreds,” Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno told Good Morning America on Thursday.
Ian was moving northeast across Florida at about 8 mph with maximum sustained winds of 65 mph at 5 a.m. Thursday, according to the National Hurricane Center. However, the agency warned that Ian could pick back up and reach hurricane strength as it reaches Florida’s east coast on Saturday, posing risks to Georgia and the Carolinas.
The NHC downgraded Hurricane Ian to tropical storm status early Thursday morning after the storm began to weaken gradually overnight Wednesday as it moved across central Florida.
It’s not yet clear how many fatalities or injuries have been sustained due to Ian, and there have not been any reports or numbers from state officials. During a news conference on Thursday, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) said the reports of hundreds of fatalities have not been confirmed.
“I think you’ll have more clarity on that in the next day or so,” DeSantis said. “We have had two unconfirmed fatalities in the sense that we don’t know they are linked to the storm. I mean, our assumption is that it likely is, so basically, the [Florida Department of Law Enforcement] will make that assessment, and that will be reported.”
DeSantis added that the predicted death toll may just be a result of a higher volume of 911 calls that have not yet been resolved as first responders work to access houses that have been surrounded by water.
President Joe Biden declared a major disaster for Florida early Thursday morning, approving the distribution of federal aid to supplement recovery efforts in the aftermath of Ian. This federal assistance includes grants for temporary housing and home repairs, loans to insure property losses, and other programs to assist business owners in recovering from the storm’s damage.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Ian made landfall in Florida as a Category 4 storm with maximum sustained winds of 150 mph just after 3 p.m. Eastern time on Wednesday, making it the strongest hurricane to rock the state since Hurricane Michael in 2018. State officials issued evacuation orders earlier this week before the storm reached the state, warning of possibly life-threatening conditions from high winds and heavy rainfall.
