Hurricane Ian – live update: Florida cities under water, many stranded and 1.8m without power in monster storm
Hurricane Ian has roared ashore in southwest Florida, making landfall at 3.05pm (local time) on Wednesday as a Category 4 storm with winds of 155mph.
Public officials urged residents who had failed to heed evacuation orders in vulnerable, low-lying areas to shelter in place as forecasters warned of “unsurvivable” storm surges of up to 18 feet in places.
Destructive waves slammed into the southwest coast from Englewood to Bonita Beach including Charlotte Harbor, near the town of Punta Gorda, north of Fort Myers. As Ian plods across Florida in the next 24 hours, it is expected to drop 12 -18 inches of rain on top of coastal surges.
Florida governor Ron DeSantis urged Floridians to hunker down, noting that it would be a “nasty” couple of days. More than 1.8 million people were without power on Wednesday afternoon.
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Disney and Universal closed as storm passes Orlando
11:00 , Gino Spocchia
Both Walt Disney World Resort Florida and Universal Orlando Resort have announced park closures as Hurricane Ian moved through central Florida and just south of Orlando on Thursday morning.
Disney said: “We are continuing to closely monitor Hurricane Ian and are making necessary operational adjustments to maintain the safety of our Guests and Cast Members.”
Guests were allowed to stay at resort hotels if they checked-in before 3pm on Wednesday, but will be expected to shelter in place at the resort. An estimated reopening of Friday remains unconfirmed.
Walt Disney World Resort Update on Hurricane Ian – For the latest information, visit: https://t.co/tFCa0Atuj5 pic.twitter.com/2HikYFXRU6
— Disney Parks (@DisneyParks) September 27, 2022
Some Florida residents evacuate art collections as Hurricane Ian threatens state
10:03 , Graeme Massie
ICYMI: Florida residents are taking steps to protect collections worth millions as the storm makes landfall in the state.
Abe Asher has the story.
Some Florida residents evacuate art collections as Hurricane Ian threatens state
Satellite captures stunning view of Hurricane Ian from 22,000 miles away as storm slams into Florida
09:05 , Graeme Massie
ICYMI: As the massive Hurricane Ian began to pound the Florida coast, Noaa’s satellite kept the storm dead in its sights.
Jon Kelvey has the story.
Satellite captures stunning view of Hurricane Ian from as storm slams into Florida
Hurricane Ian: In pictures
08:20 , Namita Singh
ICYMI: Dramatic time-lapse shows Hurricane Ian storm surge flood Florida island
07:59 , Graeme Massie
What leaks, hurricanes and fires mean for Nasa’s Artemis I moon mission launch date
07:45 , Namita Singh
As if launching a gigantic Moon rocket for the first time isn’t hard enough on its own, Nasa has faced multiple fuel leaks, engine troubles, and now a building fire and category 4 hurricane in its attempt to get the Artemis I mission launched before the end of the year.
As Nasa’s Space Launch System (SLS) Moon rocket and Orion spacecraft waiting out Hurricane Ian inside the Vehicle Assembly Building — essentially a giant rocket hangar — at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a launch attempt that had been scheduled for Tuesday could now slip into the middle of October, or even into early November.
Nasa’s Artemis I mission will be the first test flight of the SLS rocket, which will send the solar powered Orion spacecraft on more than month-long journey to, around, and back from the Moon in an uncrewed shake down of the rocket and spacecraft system that Nasa homes will take humans back to the surface of the Moon in 2025.
Read more in this report from Jon Kelvey:
What leaks, hurricanes and fires mean for Nasa’s Artemis I moon mission launch date
Experts: Negative storm surge in Tampa Bay as Ian approached
07:25 , Namita Singh
Water drained from Tampa Bay on Wednesday as Hurricane Ian approached Florida’s Gulf Coast.
The storm eventually made landfall near Fort Myers, about 100 miles to the south.
A number of people posted photos on social media of themselves and others walking out onto the silty and sandy bay floor, despite warnings from local officials. Tampa Bay has a normal average deputy of about 12 feet (4 metres).
The phenomenon of the bay emptying also happened in 2017, when experts said Hurricane Irma caused a negative surge. Because a tropical storm’s winds blow counterclockwise, the winds at the northern edge of Hurricane Ian were blowing from east to west with so much force that they pushed the water from the bay into the Gulf of Mexico.
Water eventually refilled the bay.
AP
Naples Fire Department live streams water rescue
07:05 , Graeme Massie
ICYMI: In the video, posted to the department’s social media, a group of rescuers helped a woman through deep water in a city street and into the safety of a partially flooded building.
“I’m going to take you there with me as long as I can swim there. This water is cold,” said a firefighter who was videoing the rescue.
The grateful resident can be heard thanking the firefighters as the video ended.
More than 2.25 million customers without power in Florida
07:05 , Namita Singh
As of 1.57am ET, around 2,250,000 customers are currently without power in Florida because of Hurricane Ian, according to poweroutage.us.
People trapped, hospital damaged after Ian swamps southest Florida
06:40 , Namita Singh
Hurricane Ian left a path of destruction in southwest Florida, trapping people in flooded homes, damaging the roof of a hospital intensive care unit and knocking out power to two million people before aiming for the Atlantic Coast.
One of the strongest hurricanes to ever hit the United States barreled across the Florida peninsula overnight Wednesday, threatening catastrophic flooding inland, the National Hurricane Center warned.
In Port Charlotte, along Florida’s Gulf Coast, the storm surge flooded a lower-level emergency room in a hospital even as fierce winds ripped away part of the roof from its intensive care unit, according to a doctor who works there.
Water gushed down onto the ICU, forcing staff to evacuate the hospital’s sickest patients -- some of whom were on ventilators — to other floors, said Dr. Birgit Bodine of HCA Florida Fawcett Hospital. Staff members used towels and plastic bins to try to mop up the sodden mess.
More in this report:
People trapped, hospital damaged after Ian swamps SW Florida
Lara Trump sparks anger after sharing video of son driving toy car outside during Hurricane Ian
06:20 , Namita Singh
Lara Trump has sparked anger and concern after posting a video of her five-year-old son driving his toy car outside in the midst of heavy rain from Hurricane Ian.
The 39-year-old TV producer, who lives in Florida with her husband Eric Trump, shared the video to her Instagram on Wednesday of the couple’s son Eric Luke Trump. Trump and her spouse also share three-year-old daughter Carolina Dorothy Trump.
In the video, Trump’s son, who goes by the name Luke, could be seen driving his toy car in the middle of the street as rain from the Category four storm poured down. As he steered the vehicle, he held one hand over his eyes in an effort to shield his face from the rain.
My colleague Amber Raiken reports:
Lara Trump sparks anger after sharing video of son outside during Hurricane Ian
Hurricane Ian: Catfish swims up road as devastating floods hit Florida
06:05 , Graeme Massie
ICYMI: A catfish swam up a water-covered road as Hurricane Ian made landfall in Florida on Wednesday, 28 September.
The storm made landfall as a Category 4, just shy of a monstrous Category 5, packing winds of 155mph.
Hurricane Ian: Catfish swims up road as devastating floods hit Florida
News outlets under fire over videos of reporters covering Hurricane Ian
05:42 , Namita Singh
A number of news organisations were criticised on social media on Wednesday for sending journalists to report in the path of Hurricane Ian.
In one such case, member of the Fox Weather team, Robert Ray, struggled to make it through a live report in severe wind and rain in Fort Myers.
“It’s really coming in right now, Neil, and it is tough to even speak, and I’m sorry ... as we take the wrath of Ian coming into Fort Myers, and we can hear the sounds in the distance — pops, snaps — we need to be careful, things are getting dangerous here,” Ray said.
A number of observers wondered about Ray’s safety.
My colleague Abe Asher reports:
News outlets under fire over videos of reporters covering Hurricane Ian
Ian swamps southwest Florida, trapping people in homes
05:21 , Namita Singh
Hurricane Ian slammed the coast of Florida with 150mph (241kph) winds, trapping several people in their homes as streets turned to rivers.
More than 1.8 million Florida homes and businesses were left without electricity and nearly every home and business in three counties was without power.
Mark Pritchett stepped outside his home in Venice around the time the hurricane churned ashore from the Gulf of Mexico, about 35 miles to the south. He called it “terrifying”.
“I literally couldn’t stand against the wind,” Mr Pritchett wrote in a text message. “Rain shooting like needles. My street is a river. Limbs and trees down. And the worst is yet to come.”
Read more in this report:
Ian swamps southwest Florida, trapping people in homes
NOAA administrator dodges question linking Hurricane Ian to climate crisis
05:07 , Graeme Massie
ICYMI: As Ian approached the US, Jamie Rohme, the head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Hurricane Center, raised some eyebrows on Tuesday when he seemed to demur about linking the storm to the climate crisis during an interview on CNN.
Josh Marcus has the story.
Don Lemon scolded for turning NOAA Hurricane Ian interview into climate crisis debate
ICYMI: Fallen power line catches fire in Naples as Hurricane Ian rages
04:04 , Graeme Massie
Hurricane Ian: Roofs ripped off homes as eye of storm makes landfall
03:01 , Graeme Massie
TikTokers livestream devastation as category 4 storm makes landfall in Florida
02:07 , Graeme Massie
ICYMI: Citizen weather reporters are sharing their daring clips of Hurricane Ian on TikTok, transfixing millions of viewers.
Bevan Hurley has the story.
TikToks show devastation as category 4 Hurricane Ian makes landfall in Florida
Ian bringing ‘catastrophic storm surge’ to Florida
01:06 , Graeme Massie
According to the latest National Hurricane Center update at 8pm ET, “Ian Continuing to Batter the Florida Peninsula With Catastrophic Storm Surge, Winds, and Flooding.”
Lee County ‘decimated’ by hurricane says official
Thursday 29 September 2022 00:48 , Graeme Massie
Lee County Manager Roger Desjarlais says that the county, which includes Fort Myers and Cape Cora, has been “decimated” by Hurricane Ian.
“I am sad to tell you that while we don’t know the full extent of the damage to Lee County right now, we are beginning to get a sense that our community has been, in some respects, decimated,” he said on Wednesday, according to NBC News.
Hurricane Ian weakens to Category 3 storm
Thursday 29 September 2022 00:26 , Graeme Massie
Hurricane Ian has weakened to a Category 3 storm with winds of 125mph, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Women rescued from waist-deep floodwater as Hurricane Ian swamps Florida
Thursday 29 September 2022 00:05 , Graeme Massie
All 59 cats at Ernest Hemingway’s home in Key West survive storm
Wednesday 28 September 2022 23:55 , Graeme Massie
The Hemingway Home Museum in Key West says that all 59 of its famous cats have survived Hurricane Ian lashing the island.
“All our cat residents are safe. Hoping all in our community is staying safe,” the museum posted on Facebook on Wednesday.
The author started the feline colony when he lived and wrote at the property, and all 59 current members are of the six-toe variety.
More than 1.5m customers without power in Florida
Wednesday 28 September 2022 23:52 , Graeme Massie
As of 6.47pm ET, around 1,528,000 customers are currently without power in Florida because of Hurricane Ian, according to poweroutage.us.
Biden calls mayor of Fort Myers, cannot reach three other officials
Wednesday 28 September 2022 23:39 , Graeme Massie
Joe Biden called and spoke to the mayor of Fort Myers, Florida, but was unable to reach three other elected officials in the badly hit state, according to the White House.
The president reached Mayor Kevin Anderson and discussed the needs of the city, but he was not able to get through to the mayors of Cape Coral and Sarasota, as well as the Chair of Charlotte County.
The White House said that the president left messages for them.
Florida battered by Hurricane Ian
Wednesday 28 September 2022 23:21 , Graeme Massie
Boil water notice in place in parts of Pasco County, Florida
Wednesday 28 September 2022 23:10 , Graeme Massie
“The water distribution system in this area lost pressure today (and) a water main ruptured,” stated a tweet from the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office.
“While water service was restored, all water used for drinking or cooking should be boiled for at least one minute as a precaution.”
BOIL WATER NOTICE: A boil water notice is in effect for areas near the intersection of Columbus Dr. and Rock Royal Dr. in Holiday. This precautionary notice affects the east side of Columbus Dr. and west side of Rock Royal Dr. between Moog Rd. and Beacon Square Dr. (1/2) pic.twitter.com/mznycUzpX5
— Pasco Sheriff (@PascoSheriff) September 28, 2022
Florida sheriff says people ‘trapped’ in homes by ‘deep water'
Wednesday 28 September 2022 22:38 , Graeme Massie
Collier County Sheriff’s Office in Naples, Florida, says that it is receiving calls from residents suffering “life-threatening medical emergencies in deep water.”
“Here’s some tough news you need to know. We aren’t holding back: We are in call triage mode,” CCSO stated on Facebook.
“We are getting a significant number of calls of people trapped by water in their homes. 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. Lee County’s 9-1-1 system is down and rerouting to our Center.
“You can’t even imagine those calls. Do not call 9-1-1 unless it is an emergency. We all have Collier Courage and we’ll get through this.
Cuba restores some electricity in wake of Hurricane Ian
Wednesday 28 September 2022 22:15 , Graeme Massie
Sanibel Island storm surge captured on traffic cam
Wednesday 28 September 2022 21:45 , Graeme Massie
The video was posted to Twitter by @BirdingPeepWx.
Here is a time-lapse of the #StormSurge coming in on Sanibel Island, #Florida caught on a live traffic cam. This was only 30mins condensed down, it deteriorated quickly. 😬 #HurricaneIan #Hurricane #Ian pic.twitter.com/JKuNROvMm4
— BirdingPeepWx (@BirdingPeepWx) September 28, 2022
More than one million customers without power in Florida
Wednesday 28 September 2022 21:14 , Graeme Massie
More than one million customers are now without power in Florida as of 4.06pm ET, according to poweroutage.us.
Florida men play in waves as Hurricane Ian makes landfall
Wednesday 28 September 2022 21:11 , Graeme Massie
Winds of 155mph hit southwest Florida
Wednesday 28 September 2022 21:03 , Graeme Massie
Hurricane Ian makes landfall with warnings of 'unsurvivable' storm surges
Wednesday 28 September 2022 20:56 , Graeme Massie
Florida man swims inside house as Hurricane Ian storm surge brings devastating floods
Wednesday 28 September 2022 20:50 , Graeme Massie
A man swam through a flooded house in Naples Park, Florida, as Hurricane Ian made landfall in the state on Wednesday, 28 September.
The storm made landfall as a Category 4, just shy of a monstrous Category 5, packing winds of 155mph.
Florida man swims inside house as Hurricane Ian storm surge brings devastating floods
Hurricane Ian slams into Florida as Category 4 storm
Wednesday 28 September 2022 20:45 , Graeme Massie
Photos: Hurricane Ian drains Tampa Bay ahead of storm surge
Wednesday 28 September 2022 20:39 , Graeme Massie
DeSantis asks Biden to make major disaster declaration
Wednesday 28 September 2022 20:31 , Graeme Massie
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis says he has asked the president to make a major disaster declaration for all 67 counties in the state because of the damage being caused by Hurricane Ian.
“This is a really, really significant storm. It will be one of the storms people always remember when they think about Southwest Florida,” Mr DeSantis told reporters.
Hurricane Ian makes landfall in Florida as near-Category 5 storm
Wednesday 28 September 2022 20:25 , Graeme Massie
Hurricane Ian has made landfall as a near-Category 5 storm, roaring ashore in southwestern Florida.
The storm intensified into on Wednesday morning as millions of Florida residents were told to evacuate in anticipation of storm surges, flash flooding and hurricane-force winds.
Hurricane Ian makes landfall in Florida as near-Category 5 storm
Hurricane Ian makes landfall in Florida’s Gulf Coast
Wednesday 28 September 2022 20:18 , Graeme Massie
Hurricane Ian made landfall in Florida at 3.05pm ET as a Category 4 hurricane.
The National Hurricane Center says that landfall happened along the southwestern coast of Florida near Cayo Costa around 3:05 pm EDT with winds near 150 mph.
Nearly 800,000 Florida customers without power
Wednesday 28 September 2022 20:16 , Graeme Massie
As of 3.05pm ET, there were 797,666 Florida customers without power because of Hurricane Ian, according to poweroutage.us, which tracks them across the US.
Coast Guard searching for 23 migrants after boat sunk off Florida
Wednesday 28 September 2022 20:10 , Graeme Massie
The US Coast Guard is searching for 23 migrants who were on board a boat that has sunk off the coast off Florida.
Four Cuban migrants managed to swim ashore to Stock Island in the Florida Keys, according to US Border Patrol Chief for the Miami Sector Walter Slosar.
The boat sank in “inclement weather” caused by Hurricane Ian, say officials.
#BREAKING: U.S. Border Patrol agents along with support from @mcsonews responded to a migrant landing in Stock Island #Florida. 4 Cuban migrants swam to shore after their vessel sank due to inclement weather. @USCGSoutheast initiated a #SAR operation to search for 23 individuals. pic.twitter.com/yUurGfSOSe
— Chief Patrol Agent Walter N. Slosar (@USBPChiefMIP) September 28, 2022
Waffle House closes 21 Florida locations
Wednesday 28 September 2022 20:01 , Graeme Massie
Waffle House has closed 21 locations in the state because of Hurricane Ian, the restaurant chain says.
Waffle House spokesperson Njeri Boss told NBC News that most of the impacted locations were in the path of the hurricane, with some in low-lying flood zones.
The restaurant chain is known for staying open in the wildest of weather conditions, with FEMA unofficially using a “Waffle House Index” to help assess damage caused by disasters.
Hurricane hunter says Ian flight ‘worst’ he has ever done
Wednesday 28 September 2022 19:50 , Graeme Massie
“I have flown storms for the last six years. This flight to Hurricane #Ian on Kermit was the worst I’ve ever been on. I’ve never seen so much lightning in an eye. This was the eye. You can see the curvature. Understand this is at NIGHT. The light is from LIGHTNING,” tweeted Nick Underwood.
I have flown storms for the last six years. This flight to Hurricane #Ian on Kermit (#NOAA42) was the worst I’ve ever been on. I’ve never seen so much lightning in an eye.
This was the eye. You can see the curvature. Understand this is at NIGHT. The light is from LIGHTNING. pic.twitter.com/cfZ9ls6YD3— Tropical Nick Underwood (@TheAstroNick) September 28, 2022
Photos: Hurricane Ian drains Tampa Bay ahead of storm surge
Wednesday 28 September 2022 19:46 , Graeme Massie
Hurricane Ian is expected to bring a storm surge of up to six feet to the Tampa Bay area, putting low-lying areas at extreme risk of flooding.
As the storm approached, the water drained from the bay, creating the eerie sight of an empty basin amid the normally bustling harbour.
Ethan freedman has the details.
