After the devastating hurricane “Ian”, the number of victims increases, especially in the US state of Florida. According to local officials, about 80 deaths have been reported so far, as reported by The New York Times and CBS. At least 42 people have died in Lee County alone, where “Ian” hit land with winds of up to 240 kilometers per hour, Sheriff Carmine Marceno said Sunday.
Even long after the hurricane passed, some places in Florida were affected by flooding because the soil could no longer absorb water. Hundreds of thousands of homes were left without electricity.
Mountains with a lot of rain
The hurricane largely lost strength over the weekend. The foothills rained down the east coast of the US as far as New York. Before weakening, “Ian” made landfall on the coast of South Carolina on Friday as a level one of five hurricane, causing storm surge. TV footage showed streets completely flooded and a pier partially destroyed. The state was spared deaths, said Governor Henry McMaster. Power went out to more than 500,000 homes in South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia, in part because fallen trees cut the lines. In North Carolina, even with light winds, “Ian” still claimed four lives, according to Governor Roy Cooper.
Biden travels to disaster area
US President Joe Biden will fly to Florida and Puerto Rico in the coming days to get a feel for the hurricane’s damage. The White House announced that Biden would travel first to Puerto Rico, which was hit by Hurricane Fiona, on Monday. Two weeks after the storm, some homes are still without electricity. About 90% of outages have been fixed, Criswell said. After Florida, Biden wants to follow on Wednesday. The White House announced that it would support those affected without flood insurance with up to $40,000.
years of reconstruction
“Ian” hit Florida on Wednesday as a level four of five hurricane. It left destruction and flooding in its wake across the southern state. Officials stressed that reconstruction will take months and sometimes even years. On Sunday, water levels in some central Florida cities continued to rise, as FEMA civil protection agency chief Deanne Criswell said on American television.
Rescue and cleanup efforts continued in the affected areas of Florida. The Coast Guard rescued over 300 people, some from rooftops and trees, and a good 80 pets with helicopters, among other things. In all, more than 1,100 people were recovered alive, said Governor Ron DeSantis. President Biden expressed dire fears on Thursday, saying “this could be the deadliest hurricane in Florida’s history.”
attenuated
After Florida, “Ian” went out to sea first, regained some strength, and reached the coast of South Carolina on Friday with winds of about 90 miles per hour. A few hours later, the winds weakened to about 95 kilometers per hour, according to the usual classification, the cyclone was no longer considered a hurricane.
Given the high death toll in Lee County, questions have been raised as to whether the evacuation order was issued too late. Sheriff Carmine defended the approach on Sunday: the hurricane changed course and just a day earlier it was clear it would hit Fort Myers instead of Tampa.
A debate also began over whether expensive reconstruction in areas with severe storms made long-term sense. FEMA chief Criswell said strict building codes are necessary for buildings to withstand the forces of nature. Fort Myers Mayor Kevin Anderson told CBS the new buildings mostly survived the hurricane.