Devastated cities, millions of people without electricity, but above all a human toll that could be “considerable”: Florida only began on Thursday to measure the considerable damage caused by Hurricane Ian. As images multiply of streets turning into canals of murky water, of boats thrown to the ground like simple toys, of smashed houses, the latest tally in Florida reports at least 12 dead. But it will probably be a lot harder.
The Lee County County Sheriff on Thursday morning mentioned a number that could amount to “hundreds dead,” with thousands of people trapped by the flooding while Ian made landfall a little further south, assuming that. But the official later retracted his comments, stating he didn’t have exact figures. In the case of such natural disasters, the first assessments are often difficult because many people are missing and communication is difficult.
Possibly “the deadliest hurricane in Florida history”
After being downgraded to a tropical storm overland, Ian regained strength until it was classified as a hurricane by the National Hurricane Center (NHC). Ian drove to North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia late Thursday afternoon.
“This could be the deadliest hurricane in Florida history,” US President Joe Biden said during a visit to the offices of the federal agency for the management of natural disasters, Fema. “The numbers (…) are not yet clear, but we are receiving initial reports of potentially significant human casualties,” he added, assuring that he wanted to go as soon as possible to the southern American territory of Puerto Rico, an island that recently damaged by Hurricane Fiona.
More than 2 million people without electricity
At a news conference Thursday night, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said he expected a string of deaths. However, the official-elect did not provide a preliminary number, preferring to await confirmation of the results “in the next few days,” the governor also said.
Ian made landfall in southwest Florida on Wednesday afternoon as a Category 4 (on a scale of 5) hurricane before moving further across the state, bringing with it strong winds and rain.
More than 2.3 million homes or businesses were left without power as of Thursday night, out of a total of 11 million, according to specialist website PowerOutage.