US Air Force hurricane hunters confirmed that Ian strengthened in the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico after hitting Cuba, where two people were killed and residents of the island were left without power. O. The US National Hurricane Center in Miami said Ian was centered about 100 kilometers west-southwest of Naples at 7am. ET, swirling toward the coast at 17 kilometers per hour. Forecasters and the Federal Emergency Management Administration have said the speed could slow as it makes landfall in Florida, meaning the storm could linger before passing. The major hurricane has prompted potentially dangerous storm surge warnings along the state’s heavily populated Gulf Coast from Bonita Beach to the Tampa Bay area. “Ninety percent of your deaths in these tropical systems are from water — it’s the storm, it’s the rain,” said National Weather Service Director Ken Graham. Graham highlighted the system’s slow speed in an update Wednesday, indicating that it will take about 24 hours after landfall for Ian to pass through Florida. He also urged residents to be cautious and follow directions if using gas generators, which have also led to storm-related deaths in past hurricanes. The exact location of the spill was still uncertain, but with Tropical Storm Ian’s winds extending 280 kilometers from its center, flash flooding was possible across the state. Individual tornadoes broke out of the storm long before landfall, one of which damaged small planes and a hangar at North Perry Airport, west of Hollywood along the Atlantic coast. The most damaging winds could hit a fast-growing coastline where the population has grown sevenfold since 1970, according to the U.S. Census, which shows Lee County has seen the eighth-highest population growth among more than 180 Atlantic counties and of the Gulf Coast in the last 50 years. There were 250,000 people in Fort Myers/Lee County mandatory evacuation zones, and authorities were worried before the storm how many would leave. “This is going to be a bad, bad day, two days,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said early Wednesday. “This is going to be a tough stretch.” An uprooted tree, blown over by strong winds from the outer zones of Hurricane Ian, sits in a shopping center parking lot Wednesday in Cooper City, Florida, just north of Miami. (Wilfredo Lee/The Associated Press) Florida residents rushed into their homes, stashed valuables upstairs and fled. “You can’t do anything about natural disasters,” said Vinod Nair, who drove inland from the Tampa area on Tuesday with his wife, son, dog and two kittens, looking for a hotel in his tourist area. Orlando. “We live in a high-risk zone, so we thought it best to evacuate.” Nair and his family were among at least 2.5 million Florida residents ordered to evacuate in anticipation of a powerful storm, strong winds and flooding rains.
Power outages are expected
Florida Power and Light warned those in Ian’s path to be without power for days. As a precaution, hundreds of residents were evacuated from several nursing homes in the Tampa area, where hospitals were also transporting some patients. Tropical storm force winds of 63 km/h reached Florida at 3am. and hurricane-force winds were recorded in Florida at 6 a.m., well before the eye of the storm moved inland, the Miami-based center said. Forecasters said the storm surge could reach 12 feet (3.6 meters) if it peaked at high tide. Rainfall near the land area can reach 46 cm. Wind blows palm trees early Wednesday in Florida’s Charlotte Harbor, located between Tampa Bay and Fort Myers in western Florida. (Ricardo Arduengo/AFP/Getty Images) Airports in Tampa, St. Petersburg and Key West were closed. Disney World and Sea World theme parks in Orlando were all closed ahead of the storm. A couple from England on vacation in Tampa faced the storm in a shelter. Glynn and Christine Williams from London were told to leave their hotel near the beach when evacuations were ordered. Because the airport was closed, they couldn’t get a flight home. CAUTION l Small investments in roofing can minimize storm damage, says expert:
How Canadians can better prepare for extreme weather events
Paul Kovacs, the executive director of the Catastrophic Loss Reduction Institute, explains the steps Canadians can take to protect themselves and their homes from extreme weather events, including floods and even hurricanes, under the light of destruction from post-tropical storm Fiona in Atlantic Canada. “Unfortunately, all the hotels are full or closed, so it looks like we’ll be in one of the shelters,” Christine Williams said. “You know, you’ve got to go with the flow,” added Glenn Williams. “So we’re very happy to be doing what we’re doing.”
Georgia, South Carolina are also on alert
Parts of Georgia and South Carolina could also see flooding rains and some coastal blowing on Saturday. Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp preemptively declared a state of emergency, putting 500 National Guard troops on standby to respond as needed. Before turning toward Florida, Ian hit Cuba’s Pinar del Rio province with sustained winds of 125 mph (205 km/h). State media reported two deaths in the province: a woman was killed by a falling wall and another by a roof collapse. The storm also wreaked havoc in the island nation’s world-famous tobacco belt, including one of Cuba’s most important tobacco farms, Finca Robaina. “It was revealing, a real disaster,” said Hirochi Robaina, owner of the farm that bears his name and that his grandfather made internationally famous. It should also be emphasized that the Widespread extended river flooding expected across K Florida & ; significant flooding is spreading across SE Georgia and coastal South Carolina. pic.twitter.com/fFqNpV4QF2 —@NHC_Atlantic Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel visited the affected area, telling the population: “Although the first impact is very painful, there is nothing we can do but overcome adversity.” Cuba’s Ministry of Energy and Mines said it had restored power to three areas by activating two large power plants in Felton and Nuevitas and is working to bring others back online.
