Orlando is looking at the potential for severe damage as Ian continues into the area as a strong tropical storm. Alex Wilson from The Weather Channel reports.
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As Hurricane Ian continues to pummel Florida, trapping residents in their homes and leaving millions without power in what’s already being called a “life-changing event,” authorities are fielding rescue calls from across the state and 911 call centers are being inundated.
Ian slammed into southwestern Florida near Cayo Costa Wednesday afternoon as one of the strongest storms to make landfall on the state’s west coast, sending rising ocean water onshore and lashing the state with catastrophic 150 mph winds as it moved deeper inland.
The monster storm flooded roads and homes, uprooted trees, sent cars floating in the streets and left nearly 2.5 million homes and businesses without power as of early Thursday, according to PowerOutage.us.
By early Thursday morning, authorities were reporting heavy rain and flooding in the Orlando metro area, where 8 to 12 inches of rain had already fallen and up to 4 more inches of rain was expected.
The storm has since weakened to a Category 1 hurricane and is crawling across central Florida as it heads toward the east coast, dumping heavy rains on low-lying areas.
Here are the latest developments:
Sustained winds of 75 mph: The center of the storm is about 55 miles south-southeast of Orlando, packing powerful winds while it makes its way across the state. Hurricane Ian is tied with 2004’s Hurricane Charley as the strongest storm to make landfall on the west coast of the Florida Peninsula, both with 150 mph winds at landfall.
Record-high storm surges: The storm surge from Hurricane Ian hit up to 12 feet in some places, while multiple areas, including Punta Gorda, Port Charlotte, Fort Myers and Naples, were facing record-high storm surge of 12 to 16 feet. By Wednesday night, the storm surge along the west coast of Florida was believed to have peaked and was beginning to recede, while officials in Tampa warned residents to stay on guard.
More than a foot of rainfall: Up to 20 inches of rain was expected in some areas, including Lehigh Acres, which received 14.42 inches of rain and Warm Mineral Springs which got 11.05 inches.
Hurricane warnings and tornado watches continue: The storm is moving northeast at 9 mph, prompting hurricane warnings for a stretch of Florida’s west coast north of Bonita Beach to the Anclote River, and on the east coast from Sebastian Inlet to the Flagler-Volusia County line.
Other states brace for Ian’s destruction: The storm is expected to exit Florida and move into the Atlantic Ocean on Thursday, where governors in Georgia, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina have already declared a state of emergency
With Hurricane Ian continuing to cut a path of destruction through Florida, the state is planning a “three-pronged” search and rescue response, with crews ready to fan out and help residents from the air, ground and sea once it is safe to do, officials said.
Calls for help were coming into several counties Wednesday.
In Fort Myers – where about 96% of the city was without power – Fire Chief Tracy McMillion told residents to stay inside, and to stay hopeful. “We’re coming for you, be encouraged,” he told residents.
The city’s downtown streets were flooded with almost four feet of water Wednesday, Mayor Kevin Anderson told CNN.
Crews surveying damage in the city early Thursday reported debris in the roadways, flooding, electrical lines down, power poles in the roads, traffic lights out, disabled vehicles and collapsed buildings.
Fort Myers resident Thomas Podgorny told CNN he was trapped in his two-story home with three others, watching vehicles float away outside and worrying for his neighbors who did not evacuate.
“I’ve lost my house. I have water and gas flowing through my bottom floor,” Podgorny said. “My neighbors have very little breathing room in their one-story house.”
A couple in Fort Myers said they were trapped in their home when the ceiling caved in, sending water inside.
“Something is dripping on me,” Belinda Collins recalled her partner saying. “He got up, and the ceiling – the family room ceiling – caved in.’”
The couple said they called 911 and were waiting for a call back about when it would be safe to leave.
In Port Charlotte, the roof above an ICU at a hospital was torn off by the storm while there were about 160 patients inside, Dr. Birgit Bodine, an internal medicine specialist at the facility, told CNN.
The staff moved patients to a safe place, but they couldn’t evacuate yet because of the conditions outside, the doctor said Wednesday night, adding, “It’s actually pretty terrible.”
People in nearby Collier County were also without power and trapped in their homes, calling for help.
“Some are reporting life threatening medical emergencies in deep water. We will get to them first. Some are reporting water coming into their house but not life threatening. They will have to wait. Possibly until the water recedes,” a Collier County Sheriff’s Office statement said.
Complicating matters further, neighboring Lee County’s 911 system was down and calls were being rerouted to Collier County, Chief Stephanie Spell told CNN. “At this point the majority of our 911 calls are water rescues,” Spell added.
Elsewhere, conditions were too severe for first responders to be out.
Emergency crews in Charlotte County were not able to respond to 911 calls Wednesday due to dangerous storm conditions, county Emergency Management Director Patrick Fuller told CNN.
And in Sarasota, authorities decided Wednesday to withdraw all police officers from the street due to wind speeds and hazardous conditions, Mayor Eric Arroyo told CNN.
While other areas began rescue efforts Wednesday evening, authorities in Tampa and Orange County warned residents that the worst of Hurricane Ian had “yet to come” Wednesday night.
Curfews were in effect for residents in Collier, Lee and Charlotte counties while severe conditions continued.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
NOAA/NASA
A satellite image shows Hurricane Ian making landfall on the southwest coast of Florida on Wednesday, September 28.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Marco Bello/Reuters
A flooded street is seen in downtown Fort Myers, Florida, after Hurricane Ian made landfall on Wednesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Marco Bello/Reuters
A woman surveys damage through a door during a power outage in Fort Myers on Wednesday.
shelter in place until further notice.” class=”gallery-image__dam-img” height=”1042″/>
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Naples Police
The streets of Naples, Florida, are flooded on Wednesday. City officials asked residents to shelter in place until further notice.
water was receding due to a negative storm surge.” class=”gallery-image__dam-img” height=”1264″/>
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Ben Hendren/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
A woman is helped out of a muddy area on Wednesday in Tampa, Florida, where water was receding due to a negative storm surge.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Ricardo Arduengo/AFP/Getty Images
Strong winds hit Punta Gorda, Florida, on Wednesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Pedro Portal/El Nuevo Herald/TNS/Abaca/Reuters
Sailboats anchored in Roberts Bay are blown around in Venice, Florida, on Wednesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Crystal Vander Weit/TCPalm/USA Today Network
Melvin Phillips stands in the flooded basement of his mobile home in Stuart, Florida, on Wednesday.
water was receding from Tampa Bay on Wednesday.” class=”gallery-image__dam-img” height=”1125″/>
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Bryan R. Smith/AFP/Getty Images
Officials believe it was caused by a tornado fueled by Hurricane Ian.” class=”gallery-image__dam-img” height=”1332″/>
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Greg Lovett/The Palm Beach Post/USA Today Network
Damage is seen at the Kings Point condos in Delray Beach, Florida, on Wednesday. Officials believe it was caused by a tornado fueled by Hurricane Ian.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Marco Bello/Reuters
A TV crew broadcasts from the beach in Fort Myers on Wednesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Stephen M. Dowell/Orlando Sentinel/AP
Utility trucks are staged in a rural lot Wednesday in The Villages, a Florida retirement community.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Shannon Stapleton/Reuters
Highways in Tampa, Florida, are empty Wednesday ahead of Hurricane Ian making landfall. Several coastal counties in western Florida were under mandatory evacuations.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Wilfredo Lee/AP
An airplane is overturned in Pembroke Pines, Florida, on Wednesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Joe Cavaretta/South Florida Sun-Sentinel via AP
Zuram Rodriguez surveys the damage around her home in Davie, Florida, early on Wednesday.
causing an islandwide blackout.” class=”gallery-image__dam-img” height=”1953″/>
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Ramon Espinosa/AP
People play dominoes by flashlight during a blackout in Havana, Cuba, on Wednesday. Crews in Cuba have been working to restore power for millions after the storm battered the western region with high winds and dangerous storm surge, causing an islandwide blackout.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Yamil Lage/AFP/Getty Images
People walk through a flooded street in Batabano, Cuba, on Tuesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Chris O’Meara/AP
Southwest Airlines passengers check in near a sign that shows canceled flights at the Tampa International Airport on Tuesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Ramon Espinosa/AP
Maria Llonch retrieves belongings from her home in Pinar del Rio, Cuba, on Tuesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Willie J. Allen Jr./Orlando Sentinel via AP
Traffic builds along Interstate 4 in Tampa on Tuesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Alexandre Meneghini/Reuters
A man carries his children through rain and debris in Pinar del Rio on Tuesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Alexandre Meneghini/Reuters
People drive through debris in Pinar del Rio on Tuesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Frederic and Mary Herodet board up their Gulf Bistro restaurant in St. Pete Beach, Florida, on Tuesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images
NASA’s Artemis I rocket rolls back to the Vehicle Assembly Building at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Tuesday. The launch of the rocket was postponed due to the impending arrival of Hurricane Ian.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
NASA via AP
Hurricane Ian is seen from the International Space Station on Monday, September 26.
Hurricane Ian reaches Cuba on Monday.” class=”gallery-image__dam-img” height=”1145″/>
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Yamil Lage/AFP/Getty Images
A Cuban family transports personal belongings to a safe place in the Fanguito neighborhood of Havana on Monday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Adalberto Roque/AFP/Getty Images
A family carries a dog to a safe place in Batabano on Monday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Phelan M. Ebenhack/AP
People wait in lines to fuel their vehicles at a Costco store in Orlando on Monday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Mike Lang/USA Today Network
Ryan Copenhaver, manager of Siesta T’s in Sarasota, Florida, installs hurricane panels over the store’s windows on Monday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Yamil Lage/AFP/Getty Imagaes
A man helps pull small boats out of Cuba’s Havana Bay on Monday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Gregg Newton/AFP via Getty Images
Shelves are empty in a supermarket’s water aisle in Kissimmee, Florida, on Monday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Martha Asencio-Rhine/Tampa Bay Times via ZUMA Press Wire
Cathie Perkins, emergency management director in Pinellas County, Florida, references a map on Monday that indicates where storm surges would impact the county. During a news conference, she urged anyone living in those areas to evacuate.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Andrew West/USA Today Network
Sarah Peterson fills sandbags in Fort Myers Beach, Florida, on Saturday, September 24.
Even before the hurricane made landfall, officials knew the damage would be severe, and there will be a long road to recovery.
“Ian is going to be a life-changing event. This is a very powerful, catastrophic storm that is going to do significant damage,” President and CEO of Florida Power & Light Eric Silagy, said.
There will be sections of infrastructure that crews won’t be able to repair and will have to be rebuilt, which can take weeks, Silagy said.
Jennifer Dexter, a spokesperson for the town of Fort Myers Beach, told CNN backup water pumps are down.
“When the backup water pump system goes down, that shows you how serious it is,” Dexter said.
Lee County Utilities issued a system-wide boil water notice for all customers effective immediately due to the impacts of the hurricane, according to county officials. Residents in parts of Pasco County were also asked to boil their tap water as the water distribution system in the area lost pressure and a water main ruptured.
Punta Gorda’s water system is empty and boil water notices are in effect, according to an update from the city overnight.
In Manatee County, residents were asked to limit flushing, showering, doing dishes and laundry due to power outages impacting the system.
In Cape Coral, authorities were getting reports of significant structural damage across the city, Ryan Lamb, the city’s fire chief and emergency management director, told CNN.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has requested President Joe Biden approve a major disaster declaration for all 67 counties in the state, his office said in a news release. DeSantis is also requesting Biden grant FEMA the authority to provide 100% federal cost share for debris removal and emergency protective measures for the first 60 days from Ian’s landfall.
After walloping Cuba and making landfall in Florida, Hurricane Ian is expected to slowly move across the central portion of the state before exiting into the Atlantic Ocean Thursday afternoon, where it could strengthen again and affect another part of the US.
The governors of Georgia, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina have all declared states of emergency in preparation for the storm’s potential impact.
There is a danger of “life-threatening” storm surge on Thursday and Friday along the coasts of northeast Florida, Georgia and South Carolina, according to the National Hurricane Center. Hurricane conditions are also possible in those areas.
The storm is expected to drop up to 20 inches of rain across central and northeast Florida, with some isolated areas receiving 30 inches, the hurricane center said.
Near the hurricane’s core, powerful wind gusts will continue to spread across central Florida and along the east-central coast overnight.
“I wish this wasn’t a forecast I had to deliver,” National Weather Service Director Ken Graham said Wednesday as federal officials gave a dire update on Hurricane Ian.
“This is going to be a storm that we talk about for many years to come,” he said, adding that the majority of the state will be in Ian’s “crosshairs,” including inland areas.
Ian’s winds are as strong as 155 mph and extend 35 miles beyond the eye of the storm.
“It’s not just right there in the center. It’s a bigger impact from all this,” Graham said.
Ian will take 24 hours or so to move across the state after the eye of the storm reaches land, Graham said, setting up a dangerous situation for millions. Powerful winds and rain, on top of slow movement, could contribute to some places seeing up to 18 feet of storm surge and up to 2 feet of rain alone.
Even Florida’s east coast is expected to see some storm surge and strong winds, he said, and tornadoes will continue to be a threat, mostly in the front right quadrant of the storm.
Gail McGovern, CEO of American Red Cross, said nearly 500 Red Cross responders are ready and shelter supplies are prepared for 60,000 people. By the end of the weekend, she anticipates more than 2,500 Red Cross responders will be deployed.
“To everyone in the path of the storm: Please, please, please follow the evacuation instructions from your elected officials and your local officials,” McGovern said. “We know that for many of you, recovery from Hurricane Ian will likely be a very long road, and your American Red Cross will be there.”
FEMA has staged 3.7 million meals and 3.5 million liters of water ahead of landfall. 300 ambulances – the same used to help the state during the COVID-19 pandemic – are ready to assist.
Amazon is temporarily pausing operations at some of its facilities as Hurricane Ian barrels towards Florida, the company confirmed to CNN on Wednesday.
“We’re closely monitoring the path of Hurricane Ian and making adjustments to our operations in order to keep our employees and those delivering for us safe,” Richard Rocha, an Amazon
(AMZN) spokesperson, told CNN in a statement.
“We’re in regular contact with our employees and delivery partners to ensure everyone is aware of any site closures or unsafe conditions and will continue to make adjustments as needed,” Rocha added.
CNBC previously reported that Amazon had closed warehouses near Tampa and Orlando. The outlet cited notices sent to employees that stated Amazon expects the facilities to remain closed until Friday.
Amazon declined to detail specific locations.
Employees who are scheduled to work will continue to be paid while sites are closed, according to Amazon. There are more than 8,000 full-time and part-time Amazon employees in the Tampa area.
Some other major businesses in the Florida area have also announced adjusted operations due to the hurricane’s approach. Disney World and Universal Resort theme parks in Orlando will be temporarily closed on Wednesday and Thursday. The storm has also been linked to a slew of flight cancellations at Florida airports.
Editor’s Note: Affected by the storm? Use CNN’s lite site for low bandwidth. You also can text or WhatsApp your Ian stories to CNN +1 332-261-0775.
CNN
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Hurricane Ian is poised to make landfall in southwest Florida on Wednesday and is already bringing a catastrophic trifecta of high winds, heavy rain and historic storm surge to the state.
Ian is a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 155 mph,and its center was located about 35 miles west-southwestof Fort Myers as of 1 p.m. ET, the National Hurricane Center said. The storm is moving at about 9 mph and is expected to make landfall, perhaps north of Fort Myers near the Port Charlotte and Punta Gorda areas, this afternoon, the center said.
Much of west-central Florida and places inland face disaster: “Historic” storm surge up to 18 feet is possible and could swallow coastal homes; rain could cause flooding across much of the state; and crushing winds could flatten homes and stop electricity service for days or weeks.
“This is a wind storm and a surge storm and a flood storm, all in one,” CNN meteorologist Chad Myers said. “And this is going to spread itself out across the entire state. Everybody is going to see something from this.”
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
NOAA/AP
A satellite image shows the eye of Hurricane Ian approaching the southwest coast of Florida on Wednesday, September 28.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Pedro Portal/El Nuevo Herald/TNS/Abaca/Reuters
Sailboats anchored in Roberts Bay are blown around in Venice, Florida, on Wednesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Crystal Vander Weit/TCPalm/USA Today Network
Melvin Phillips stands in the flooded basement of his mobile home in Stuart, Florida, on Wednesday.
water was receding from Tampa Bay due to a negative storm surge on Wednesday.” class=”gallery-image__dam-img” height=”1125″/>
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Bryan R. Smith/AFP/Getty Images
A man walks where water was receding from Tampa Bay due to a negative storm surge on Wednesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Stephen M. Dowell/Orlando Sentinel/AP
Utility trucks are staged in a rural lot Wednesday in The Villages, a Florida retirement community.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Marco Bello/Reuters
Traffic lights are blown by strong gusts of wind in Fort Myers, Florida, on Wednesday.
Officials believe it was caused by a tornado fueled by Hurricane Ian.” class=”gallery-image__dam-img” height=”1265″/>
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Greg Lovett/The Palm Beach Post/USA Today Network
Damage is seen at the Kings Point condos in Delray Beach, Florida, on Wednesday. Officials believe it was caused by a tornado fueled by Hurricane Ian.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Marco Bello/Reuters
A TV crew broadcasts from the beach in Fort Myers on Wednesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Shannon Stapleton/Reuters
Highways in Tampa, Florida, are empty Wednesday ahead of Hurricane Ian making landfall. Several coastal counties in western Florida were under mandatory evacuations.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Wilfredo Lee/AP
An airplane is overturned in Pembroke Pines, Florida, on Wednesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Joe Cavaretta/South Florida Sun-Sentinel via AP
Zuram Rodriguez surveys the damage around her home in Davie, Florida, early on Wednesday.
causing an islandwide blackout.” class=”gallery-image__dam-img” height=”1953″/>
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Ramon Espinosa/AP
People play dominoes by flashlight during a blackout in Havana, Cuba, on Wednesday. Crews in Cuba have been working to restore power for millions after the storm battered the western region with high winds and dangerous storm surge, causing an islandwide blackout.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Chris O’Meara/AP
Workers board up windows on the University of Tampa campus on Tuesday, September 27.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Yamil Lage/AFP/Getty Images
People walk through a flooded street in Batabano, Cuba, on Tuesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Chris O’Meara/AP
Southwest Airlines passengers check in near a sign that shows canceled flights at the Tampa International Airport on Tuesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Ramon Espinosa/AP
Maria Llonch retrieves belongings from her home in Pinar del Rio, Cuba, on Tuesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Willie J. Allen Jr./Orlando Sentinel via AP
Traffic builds along Interstate 4 in Tampa on Tuesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Alexandre Meneghini/Reuters
A man carries his children through rain and debris in Pinar del Rio on Tuesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Alexandre Meneghini/Reuters
People drive through debris in Pinar del Rio on Tuesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Frederic and Mary Herodet board up their Gulf Bistro restaurant in St. Pete Beach, Florida, on Tuesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Yamil Lage/AFP/Getty Images
People stand outside a flooded warehouse in Batabano on Tuesday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images
NASA’s Artemis I rocket rolls back to the Vehicle Assembly Building at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Tuesday. The launch of the rocket was postponed due to the impending arrival of Hurricane Ian.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
NASA via AP
Hurricane Ian is seen from the International Space Station on Monday, September 26.
Hurricane Ian reaches Cuba on Monday.” class=”gallery-image__dam-img” height=”1145″/>
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Yamil Lage/AFP/Getty Images
A Cuban family transports personal belongings to a safe place in the Fanguito neighborhood of Havana on Monday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Shannon Stapleton/Reuters
Local residents fill sandbags in Tampa on Monday to help protect their homes from flooding.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Adalberto Roque/AFP/Getty Images
A family carries a dog to a safe place in Batabano on Monday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Phelan M. Ebenhack/AP
People wait in lines to fuel their vehicles at a Costco store in Orlando on Monday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Mike Lang/USA Today Network
Ryan Copenhaver, manager of Siesta T’s in Sarasota, Florida, installs hurricane panels over the store’s windows on Monday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Kevin Morales/AP
A woman takes photos while waves crash against a seawall in George Town, Grand Cayman, on Monday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Yamil Lage/AFP/Getty Imagaes
A man helps pull small boats out of Cuba’s Havana Bay on Monday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Gregg Newton/AFP via Getty Images
Shelves are empty in a supermarket’s water aisle in Kissimmee, Florida, on Monday.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Martha Asencio-Rhine/Tampa Bay Times via ZUMA Press Wire
Cathie Perkins, emergency management director in Pinellas County, Florida, references a map on Monday that indicates where storm surges would impact the county. During a news conference, she urged anyone living in those areas to evacuate.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
NOAA/NASA
This satellite image, taken Monday at 1 p.m. ET, shows Hurricane Ian near Cuba.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Andrew West/USA Today Network
Sarah Peterson fills sandbags in Fort Myers Beach, Florida, on Saturday, September 24.
Photos: Hurricane Ian barrels into Florida
Andrew West/USA Today Network
Besnik Bushati fills gas containers at a gas station in Naples, Florida, on Saturday. The station had only premium gas that morning.
Fort Myers Beach was already feeling the brunt of the storm’s powerful eyewall just after noon Wednesday. Frank Loni, an architect from California staying in the community, posted video from a building’s balcony of some of the flooding on the streets below.
“The storm surge is very significant. We’re seeing cars and boats float down the street. We’re seeing trees nearly bent in half,” Loni said. “There’s quite a bit of chaos on the streets.”
Mandatory evacuations have been ordered for flood-prone areas on the coast, and the National Weather Service warned those who stayed behind to move to upper floors in case of rising water levels.
“This is a powerful storm that should be treated like you would treat” a tornado approaching your home, Gov. Ron DeSantis said around 8 a.m.
Images showed extensive flooding in coastal neighborhoods in Naples, where officials asked residents to shelter in place until further notice.
In some areas, such as Charlotte County, Florida, 911 response teams have stopped emergency service due to the high winds and dangerous conditions. Sarasota Mayor Eric Arroyo said on CNN’s “At This Hour” that police officers were being taken off the streets due to the wind speeds and hazardous conditions.
“It is too late to evacuate at this point,” Arroyo said.
About 480,000 Florida utility customers already were without power as of 2 p.m., according to PowerOutage.us.
Ian poses several major dangers:
• Storm surge: Some 12 to 18 feet of seawater pushed onto land is forecast Wednesday for the coastal Fort Myers area, from Englewood to Bonita Beach, forecasters said. Only slightly less is forecast for a stretch from Bonita Beach down tonear the Everglades (8 to 12 feet), and from near Bradenton to Englewood (6 to 10 feet), forecasters said.
Lower – but still life-threatening – surge is possible elsewhere, including north of Tampa and along Florida’s northeast coast near Jacksonville.
• Winds: Southwest Florida is facing “catastrophic wind damage.” Winds near the core of Hurricane Ian could exceed 150 mph, with gusts up to 190 mph, the hurricane center said. Multiple locations, including Sanibel Island, already have recorded wind gusts above 100 mph.
Ian is expected to retain hurricane strength for some time as it crosses the peninsula, with hurricane warnings issued for not only southwest Florida but also much of central Florida from coast to coast.
• Flooding rain: Because the storm is expected to slow down, 12 to 24 inches of rain could fall in central and northeastern Florida – including Tampa, Orlando and Jacksonville. That makes for a top-of-scale risk for flooding rainfall across this area.
Prior to nearing Florida, Hurricane Ian pummeled Cuba on Tuesday, leaving at least two dead and an islandwide blackout.
Since then, residents of Florida’s vulnerable Gulf Coast have been boarding up and leaving in droves on congested highways. More than 2.5 million people were advised to flee, including 1.75 million under mandatory evacuation orders – no small ask in a state with a large elderly population, some of whom have to be moved from long-term care centers.
Storm surge already was rising late Wednesday morning – more than 4.5 feet above normal highest tides was recorded before noon in Naples, already higher than the previous record there of 4.02 feet from Hurricane Irma in 2017.
After making landfall in southwest Florida, Ian’s center is expected to move over central Florida through Thursday morning. Heavy rain and flooding also is possible in southern Florida, Georgia and coastal South Carolina.
Ian is slowing as it approaches land, and that will cause the worst conditions to remain over some areas for eight or more hours.
“Widespread, life-threatening catastrophic flash, urban, and river flooding is expected” across central and southern Florida, the hurricane center said.
By late Thursday, Ian is due to emerge over the Atlantic Ocean, where it could strengthen again and affect another part of the US.
Parts of far southern Florida by early Wednesday morning had begun feeling the storm’s effects, with tropical storm-force winds and at least two possible tornadoes reported in Broward County, including at North Perry Airport, where planes and hangers were damaged. Major flooding was being reported in Key West due to storm surge, along with power outages.
Schools, supermarkets, theme parks, hospitals and airports had announced closures. The Navy moved its ships, and the Coast Guard has shut down ports. As winds pick up, gas stations may temporarily run out of fuel, DeSantis said.
In Tampa, police went door to door Tuesday in a mandatory evacuation zone, making sure residents were ready to flee. Earlier projections had Ian on track to slam Tampa Bay, and even as the hurricane’s path shifted south, mandatory evacuations and preparations continued, Tampa Mayor Jane Castor said.
Law enforcement officials around the state warned that people who stayed behind in evacuation areas cannot expect rescuers to respond to calls for help during the storm when winds are high.
“If you call for help, once we pull (officers) off the road … we’re not coming. … We’re not putting people in peril when (others) didn’t heed the mandatory evacuation order,” Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said Wednesday.
Not everyone moved. Chelsye Napier, of Fort Myers, stayed home with her fiance and cats despite being in an evacuation zone, she told CNN Wednesday. They waited “because we don’t know anyone down here,” and ultimately decided to stay put, she said.
Ian’s winds could be catastrophic
Category 4: 130-156 mph
• Most of the area is uninhabitable for weeks or months.
• Power outages last weeks to months.
• Fallen trees and power poles isolate residential areas.
+ Well-built framed homes sustain severe damage.
Category 5: 157+ mph
+ A high percentage of framed homes are destroyed.
“If anything happens, we have everything that we need here. We’ve got food, we got water. We have everything that we need here,” she said. “So it’s all OK for right now. We’ll see, though, later on.”
Preparations across Florida have been underway for days as residents braced for Ian’s wrath. People lined up to pick up sandbags and flocked to stores to stock up on supplies like water and batteries.
And as the hurricane marched closer, the closures began.
Across Florida, 58 school districts have announced closures due to storm as campuses turned into shelters for evacuees. Disney World is set to close Wednesday and Thursday, as is Kennedy Space Center’s Visitor Complex. And hundreds of Publix grocery stores shut their doors Tuesday evening, expected to remain closed through Thursday.
As millions were told evacuate, 176 shelters opened statewide and hotels and Airbnbs opened to people leaving evacuation zones, DeSantis said.
Local governments and state agencies also prepared those living in nursing homes and other senior care facilities to evacuate.
Florida has around 6 million residents over the age of 60, according to the state’s Department of Elder Affairs – nearly 30% of its total population. As of Tuesday, all adult day cares, senior community cafes and transportation services in evacuation zones are closed, according to the department.
Authorities also readied services to fan out and respond to calls for rescue and then, in the aftermath of the hurricane, for recovery and repair efforts.
Nearly 400 ambulances, buses and support vehicles were responding to areas where the hurricane was expected to make landfall, according to the governor’s office.
DeSantis activated 5,000 Florida National Guard members for Ian’s response operations, and 2,000 more guardsmen from Tennessee, Georgia and North Carolina were being activated to assist.
Florida urban search and rescue teams also were prepping.
“We have five state teams that are activated with additional five FEMA teams that are in play,” Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis said at a news conference Tuesday night. “We have over 600 resources to bear in addition to these out-of-town teams.”
“This storm is incredibly dangerous, to state the obvious. It’s life-threatening. You should obey all warnings and directions from emergency officials. Don’t take anything for granted. Use their judgment, not yours. Evacuate when ordered. Be prepared. Storm warnings are real, the evacuation notices are real, the danger is real,” Biden said as he began remarks at the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health.
He added, “And when the storm passes, the federal government is going to be there to help you recover. We’ll be there to help you clean up and rebuild and get Florida moving again. And we’ll be there at every step of the way. That’s my absolute commitment to the people of the state of Florida.”
The Category 4 – near-Category 5 – storm is projected to reach the state’s southwestern coast in the morning and move onshore later Wednesday with catastrophic flooding, sustained winds of 155 miles per hour and life-threatening storm surge, officials have warned. Biden continues to closely monitor the storm and receive regular updates.
Biden said his team has been in “constant contact” with DeSantis.
“My message has been absolutely clear: It’s that we are on alert and in action through every request Florida has made for temporary assistance, emergency assistance, long term assistance that I received,” Biden said of his conversations with those officials.
He said he’s discussed preparations for the storm with officials, including hundreds of Federal Emergency Management Agency personnel, thousands of National Guard members and the development and deployment of search and rescue teams. FEMA, he said, has pre-positioned water, meals, and generators, as well as shelters.
Biden also offered an emphatic warning to oil and gas executives. He warned that if any gas companies do try to use the storm to raise prices at the pump he will ask officials to look into price gouging.
“This small temporary storm impact on oil production provides no excuse – no excuse – for price increases at the pump. None,” Biden said,
The President noted that experts have informed him that about 190,000 barrels of oil a day have been affected by the storm thus far, which is less than 2% of the United States’ daily production.
“America is watching. The industry should do the right thing. As a matter of fact, they should move more quickly now to bring down the price at the pump because gasoline is down a great deal. There’s too much of a delay,” Biden said.
Typhoon Noru made landfall near Vietnam’s popular beach resort city of Da Nang on Wednesday morning, bringing powerful winds and heavy rain ashundredsof thousands of people were evacuated.
Noru hit Vietnam at 5 a.m. Wednesday local time, according to CNN Weather, less than 36 hours hours after it left a trail of destruction in the Philippines – where it was known as Karding.
The typhoon weakened a little prior to making landfall, but was still equivalent to a high-end Category 2 hurricane with winds near 175 kph, or about 109 mph.
Winds eased and the storm weakened to the equivalent of a Category 1 hurricane just before noon, according to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center. But the province of Quang Nam, home to the historic city of Hoi An and beach resort hotspot of Da Nang suffered from floods.
More than 100,000 households with 400,000 people have been evacuated as of Tuesday, according to Viet Nam News, the English newspaper run by state-run Vietnam News Agency. About 11,000 foreign tourists and 7,000 domestic visitors are staying in the city.
The government also said local authorities had instructed nearly 58,000 boats with 300,000 laborers to move to safe shelters.
Pham Nguyen Duc Anh, 24, an English teacher at Teach For Viet Nam based in the Que Son district of Quang Nam province, along with his flat mate decided to stay at their neighbor’s house on Tuesday night because they feared the home would be vulnerable under the strong winds.
When they returned to their home late Wednesday morning when the storm began to subside, they found that their roof had been partially destroyed and that water had leaked into their house, but things were not as bad as they had initially feared.
“It was my first time here, living in the area [that is] very vulnerable to climate disasters,” he said.
BeforeNoru’sarrival, Vietnamese authorities had banned vessels from the sea and asked students to stay at home.
It will continue to bring strong winds and surges along the coast near Da Nang and is expected to weaken as it pushes inland over Southeast Asia. Central Vietnam, southern Laos, and northern Thailand face a risk of floods over the next 48 hours.
Local authorities were asked on Tuesday to cancel unnecessary meetings to concentrate on storm prevention and control, according to Viet Nam News.
Thua Thien Hue province, home to more than 2,000 fishing ships and around 11,000 fishermen, also banned vessels from going out to sea on Sunday amid warnings the storm will bring strong winds, high waves and flooding, Viet Nam News reported.
Vietnam’s Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh chaired an urgent meeting with officials on Tuesday from at least eight provinces expected to be affected by the storm to discuss response efforts, Vietnam News Agency reported.
“Ministries, branches and localities, especially the heads of such units, must further enhance their responsibilities to ensure the safety, life and property of the people and the state in the context of the weather. Climate change is becoming increasingly extreme and unusual, causing very serious consequences,” the prime minister said, according to Viet Nam News.
Typhoon Noru left the Philippines around 8 p.m. on Monday, according to a bulletin from the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), after barreling through with high winds and heavy rains that flooded Luzon – the country’s largest and most populated island.
Eight people died in typhoon-related incidents, including five rescue workers, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said on Tuesday.
Twitter said Tuesday it will permit public institutions such as transit agencies and the National Weather Service to post large volumes of automated tweets for free, provided that the accounts doing so are “verified gov or publicly owned services.”
The announcement marks another sudden pivot in Twitter’s attempts to charge institutional users for access to its platform — reflecting an apparent concession to those who warned that Twitter’s paywall plan would disrupt consumers’ ability to receive timely updates from first responders, weather agencies and other vital services for which Twitter has become an essential distribution channel.
Last week, New York’s Metropolitan Transit Authority announced it would stop posting real-time transit alerts on Twitter, citing reliability issues with Twitter’s platform and saying it does not pay tech platforms for the ability to provide the updates. In recent weeks, multiple regional accounts run by the National Weather Service have also warned followers to expect fewer weather updates in connection with Twitter’s platform changes.
Tuesday’s shift comes amid a widespread backlash to Twitter’s paid plans, which cost as much as $2.5 million per year for top-level access privileges allowing organizations to download and post large volumes of tweets in an automated fashion.
The changes, which took effect in March, restricted third parties from easily accessing Twitter’s application programming interface, or the technology that allows outside software to plug into Twitter’s platform. The changes provoked especially strong opposition from third-party app developers whose projects depend on uninterrupted Twitter access, as well asfrom academic researchers that study platform manipulation and misinformation, who said even the most expensive new plans provided just a fraction of the data Twitter once offered at no or low cost.
On Tuesday, Twitter’s official account for developers acknowledged the impact the company’s paywall could have on civil society.
“One of the most important use cases for the Twitter API has always been public utility,” it said. “Verified gov or publicly owned services who tweet weather alerts, transport updates and emergency notifications may use the API, for these critical purposes, for free.”
But while Twitter appeared to be backing off from an attempt to charge vital services substantial fees for API access, the announcement left it ambiguous regarding how Twitter planned to ensure that critical public safety and transit accounts would be “verified.”
Requiring that the accounts be verified under Twitter’s paid subscription program, Twitter Blue, could still involve forcing institutions to pay to access Twitter’s API.
Twitter’s developer account didn’t immediately respond to CNN’s questions seeking clarification on the matter.
Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly on Sunday leaned into his experience as an astronaut to call for climate crisis action amid a blistering heatwave across the United States, including his home state of Arizona.
“When I went into space four times, I mean, I could see how thin the atmosphere is over this planet. It’s as thin as a contact lens on an eyeball, and we have got to do a better job taking care of it,” Kelly told CNN’s Jake Tapper on “State of the Union.”
“I have not seen in my time in the Senate many folks that deny that the climate is changing. That was a thing of the past. Now is: What do we do about it? We passed the Inflation Reduction Act, which is a big down payment on reducing the amount of carbon we put up into the atmosphere. That will make a difference over time. We obviously have to do more,” he added.
As the climate crisis ratchets temperatures higher and higher, scientists have warned there’s a growing likelihood that 2023 could be the Earth’s hottest year on record. Heat kills more Americans than any other form of severe weather, including flooding, hurricanes or extreme cold, according to National Weather Service data.
These climate crisis warnings have been especially potent in recent days as more than 85 million people remain under heat alerts while the weekslong heat wave continues and intensifies in the Southwest. Dangerously high temperatures have continued to plague the western parts of the US throughout the weekend, with temperatures expected to grow hotter in the South in the coming days.
More than 100 temperature records could be set through Monday across the West and South.
“My view hasn’t really changed. We are suffering a heat wave here in Arizona. It is typically very hot in the summer. This is obviously dangerous to seniors and folks who are living on the streets,” Kelly said Sunday.
While scientists say the heat records are alarming, most are unsurprised – though frustrated that their warnings have been largely ignored for decades.
The world is “walking into an uncharted territory,” Carlo Buontempo, director of the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service, told CNN earlier this month. “We have never seen anything like this in our life.”
Kelly also said Sunday he was “concerned” about the impact the group “No Labels” – which is pushing for a third-party unity ticket in 2024 – could have on President Joe Biden’s reelection bid.
“I don’t think ‘No Labels’ is a political party. I mean, this is a few individuals putting dark money behind an organization, and that’s not what our democracy should be about; it should not be about a few rich people,” he told Tapper. “So I’m obviously concerned about what’s going on here in Arizona and across the country.”
Arizona Democrats have sued over the recognition of No Labels as a political party with the ability to place candidates on the state’s ballot – and potentially play a spoiler role in 2024, when Arizona, which Biden won by less than half a point in 2020, is poised to be a critical swing state.
No Labels is set to host an event Monday in New Hampshire, with centrist Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia as a keynote speaker. Kelly said he had spoken to Manchin about the issue but did not offer any details.
“I’m not going to go into details of conversations I have with my fellow senators. That’s sort of a policy of mine,” he said.
This story has been updated with additional details.
Deadly heatwaves are baking the US. Scientists just reported that July will be the hottest month on record. And now, after years of skepticism and denial in the GOP ranks, a small number of Republicans are urging their party to get proactive on the climate crisis.
But the GOP is stuck in a climate bind – and likely will be for the next four years, in large part because they’re still living in the shadow of former president and 2024 Republican frontrunner Donald Trump.
Even as more Republican politicians are joining the consensus that climate change is real and caused by humans, Trump’s inflammatory rhetoric has driven the party to the right on climate and extreme weather. Trump has called the extremely settled science of climate change a “hoax” and more recently suggested that the impacts of it “may affect us in 300 years.”
Scientists this week reported that this summer’s unrelenting heat wave would have been “virtually impossible” were it not for the planet-warming pollution from burning fossil fuels. They also confirmed that July will go down as the hottest month on record – and almost certainly that the planet’s temperature is hotter now than it has been in around 120,000 years.
Yet for being one of the most pressing issues of the 21st century, climate is rarely mentioned on the 2024 campaign trail.
“As Donald Trump is the near presumptive nominee of our party in 2024, it’s going to be very hard for a party to adopt a climate-sensitive policy,” Sen. Mitt Romney, a Republican from Utah, told CNN. “But Donald Trump’s not going to be around forever.”
When Republicans do weigh in on climate change – and what we should do about it – they tend to support the idea of capturing planet-warming pollution rather than cutting fossil fuels. But many are reticent to talk about how to solve the problem, and worry Trump is having a chilling effect on policies to combat climate within the party.
“We need to be talking about this,” Rep. John Curtis, a Republican from Utah and chair of the House’s Conservative Climate Caucus, told CNN. “And part of it for Republicans is when you don’t talk about it, you have no ideas at the table; all you’re doing is saying what you don’t like. We need to be saying what we like.”
With a few exceptions, Republicans largely are no longer the party of full-on climate change denial. But even as temperatures rise to deadly highs, the GOP is also not actively addressing it. There is still no “robust discussion about how to solve it” within the party, said former South Carolina Rep. Bob Inglis, who now runs the conservative climate group RepublicEn, save for criticism of Democrats’ clean-energy initiatives.
“The good news is Republicans are stopping arguing with thermometers,” Inglis told CNN. Still, he said, “when the experience is multiplied over and over of multiple days of three-digit temperatures in Arizona and record ocean temperatures, people start to say, ‘this is sort of goofy we’re not doing something about this.’”
Meanwhile, the impacts of a dramatically warming atmosphere are becoming more and more apparent each year. Romney and Curtis, two of the loudest climate voices in the party, both represent Utah – a state that’s no stranger to extreme heat and drought, which scientists say is being fueled by rising global temperatures.
“There are a number of states, like mine, that are concerned about wildfires and water,” Romney said, adding he believes Republican governors of impacted states have been vocal about these issues.
Utah and other Western states are looking for ways to cut water use to save the West’s shrinking two largest reservoirs, Lakes Powell and Mead. And even closer to home, Utah’s Great Salt Lake has already disappeared by two-thirds, and scientists are sounding alarms about a rapid continued decline that could kill delicate ecosystems and expose one of fastest-growing metropolitan areas in the nation to toxic dust.
“I think the evidence so far is that the West is getting drier and hotter,” Romney told CNN. “That means that we’re going to have more difficulty with our crops, we’re going to have a harder time keeping the rivers full of water. The Great Salt Lake is probably going to continue to shrink. And unfortunately, we’re going to see more catastrophic fires. If the trends continue, we need to act.”
While Republicans blast Democrats’ clean energy policies ahead of the 2024 elections, it’s less clear what the GOP itself would prefer to do about the climate crisis.
As Curtis tells it, there’s a lot that Republicans and Democrats in Congress agree on. They both want to further reform the permitting process for major energy projects, and they largely agree on the need for more renewable and nuclear energy.
As the head of the largest GOP climate caucus on the Hill, Curtis’ Utah home is “full solar,” he told CNN, and is heated using geothermal energy.
While at a recent event at a natural gas drilling site in Ohio, as smoke from Canada’s devastating wildfire season hung thick in the air, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy was asked how he would solve the climate crisis. He suggested planting a trillion trees to help offset the pollution created by burning fossil fuels – a bill House Republicans introduced in 2020. The measure has not yet passed the House and has an uncertain future in the Senate.
But the biggest and most enduring difference between the two parties is that Republicans want fossil fuels – which are fueling climate change with their heat-trapping pollution – to be in the energy mix for years to come.
Democrats, meanwhile, have passed legislation to dramatically speed up the clean energy transition and prioritize the development of wind, solar and electrical transmission to get renewables sending electricity into homes faster.
On Wednesday, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York said Democrats want to pass more climate legislation if they take back a full majority in Congress. He later told CNN the GOP is “way behind” on climate and there’s been “too little” progress on the party’s stances.
“I think we’d get a lot more done with a Democratic House, a Democratic president and continuing to have a Democratic Senate,” Schumer told CNN. “Unfortunately, if you look at some of the Republican House and Senate Super PACs, huge amounts of money come from gas, oil and coal.”
Even though Curtis and Romney are aligned on the party needing to talk about climate change, they differ on how to fix it. While Curtis primarily supports carbon capture and increased research and development into new technologies, Romney is one of the few Republicans speaking in favor of a carbon tax – taxing companies for their pollution.
“It’s very unlikely that a price on carbon would be acceptable in the House of Representatives,” Romney said. “I think you might find a few Republican senators that would be supportive, but that’s not enough.”
The idea certainly doesn’t have the support of Trump, or other 2024 candidates for president, and experts predict climate policy will get little to no airtime during the upcoming presidential race.
“Regrettably, the issue of climate change is currently being held hostage to the culture wars in America,” Edward Maibach, a professor of climate communication at George Mason University and a co-founder of a nationwide climate polling project conducted with Yale University, told CNN in an email. “Donald Trump’s climate denial stance will have a chilling effect on the climate positions of his rivals on the right — even those who know better.”
Even if climate-conscious Republicans say Trump won’t be in the party forever, Inglis said even a few more years may not be enough time to counteract the rapid changes already happening.
“That’s still a long way away,” Inglis said. “The scientists are saying we can’t wait, get moving, get moving.”
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