Hurricane Ian hits Florida with violent winds, rain and storm surges. A county sheriff speaks of "hundreds" of possible deaths. The full extent of the damage is not yet foreseeable. Rescue operations are underway, including using helicopters.
"Ian" made landfall as one of the strongest hurricanes in Florida history, bringing violent winds, rain and storm surges to the US state. With wind speeds of up to 240 kilometers per hour, which was just below the highest hurricane category, "Ian" had reached the west coast of the sunny state on Wednesday afternoon. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis spoke of damage of "historic" proportions. A southern Florida county sheriff expressed concern the death toll could be in the hundreds.
Early Thursday morning, "Ian" slowed to wind speeds of up to 100 kilometers per hour. Meteorologists downgraded the hurricane to a tropical storm, but experts continued to warn of catastrophic, even life-threatening flooding in parts of Florida. ntv weather expert Björn Alexander had pointed out that the potential of "Ian" was "considerable to dramatic", especially when it came to water masses. Some computer models had predicted more than 1,000 liters of rain per square meter.
"The impact of this storm is historic," Florida Gov. DeSantis said. "And the damage that has been caused is historic." This is only based on the first assessments, the full extent will only be foreseeable in the coming days. "We've never seen flooding like this before," DeSantis said. "We have never seen a storm surge of this magnitude." So far, however, there have been no confirmed deaths. Only two deaths are currently known, and it is not yet clear whether they were directly related to the storm, said the Republican.
The Lee County Sheriff on Florida's southwestern tip fears the death toll from "Ian" could number in the "hundreds." Many people are stuck in flooded houses and without electricity, Sheriff Carmine Marceno said on US television. However, he later clarified that he could not confirm the actual death toll. As soon as emergency services can advance to the most affected areas, there will be more clarity, Governor DeSantis said. Rescue operations are underway, including with helicopters.
According to the hurricane center, the eye of the storm was located around 70 kilometers southeast of Orlando at night and was moving northeast across the country at a speed of around 13 kilometers per hour. Television pictures showed rain lashing the streets, only the roofs of cars sticking out of the floodwaters and debris flying through the air.
Parts of downtown Fort Myers and Naples were under water, US media reported. Storm surges reached a height of around 3.5 meters, DeSantis said. Calls to emergency services from hundreds of people in Florida who had not left their homes before the storm hit have initially gone unanswered, according to the Miami Herald newspaper.
What does "Ian's" future path look like? "After a little dangling across the water, he will hit land again," said ntv weather expert Alexander. "On the coast of South Carolina on Friday and Saturday." "Ian" will remain below the hurricane category.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres described "Ian" as "another example of dramatic climate activity" that is being seen around the world with increasing frequency and devastation. "Ian" made landfall in Cuba on Tuesday as a category three of five hurricane. In the state with a good eleven million inhabitants, the power went out at times across the country. Two people died after their homes collapsed, the government said.
Meanwhile, a boat carrying migrants from Cuba sank off the coast of Florida on Wednesday. The US Coast Guard was initially looking for 23 people, as announced on Twitter. Three were saved. Four migrants had previously reached an offshore US island near Key West by swimming from the boat in stormy weather conditions.
