As reported by NBC News, the total number of fatalities rose to 134 individuals on Friday while the hunt for survivors persists in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian’s impact on Florida and portions of the Carolinas, specifically in Miami, Florida.
Hurricane Ian directly impacted the areas in southwest Florida, particularly Lee and Charlotte counties, with sustained winds of 155 miles per hour, categorizing it as a category 4 hurricane. Additionally, 9 deaths were reported in North Carolina. The total number of deaths in Florida stands at 114.
The office of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis confirmed on Sunday that over 1,600 individuals have been saved following their isolation due to the flood or their confinement in their residences as a result of the cyclone’s destruction.
AREAS STILL WITHOUT ELECTRICITY
According to data from the Florida Department of Health, thousands also lacked access to clean drinking water. They still remained without electricity, with nearly 116,448 households and businesses in Florida, as of Friday afternoon, according to the website PowerOutage.Us.
Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida, stated that 95% of the users in the stadium have already regained electrical service, 5 days after Hurricane Ian made landfall in Cayo Costa.
DeSantis said in a press conference in Cape Coral, in Lee County, one of the areas most affected by the hurricane, that 5% of the state’s subscribers remain without electrical service.
Service restoration, on the other hand, varies significantly, as certain regions on the west coast continue to have nearly half of their population without power, whereas the southeast was largely unaffected by the hurricane’s consequences.
DeSantis emphasized that state authorities are working together to ensure that the population regains all services, including access to clean water and the provision of food to the most isolated areas. There are thousands of people working on the ground to restore the energy infrastructure.
The governor added, ‘with the passage of the hurricane, more than 2 million people lost service, but in a few days, the restored work has already been done, which means.’
The service recovered 58% of subscribers, who were punished as Charlotte County’s example, as DeSantis stated.
A TEMPORARY BRIDGE TO PINE ISLAND
It is about a temporary solution that was announced to work on the infrastructure in the town of Fort Myers, which connects the Island Pine that was destroyed by the hurricane, so that the bridge can be used again by the end of this week, despite the fact that it was damaged.
For a limited time, automobiles will have the opportunity to travel once more via a comparable procedure that will be executed for the Sanibel bridge, the sole passage linking that petite island to the mainland, as stated by DeSantis.
Restoration efforts are underway for the entire population affected by Hurricane Ian in Florida, and steps are also being taken to ensure the availability of potable water, officials said.
Kevin Guthrie, head of the Florida Department of Emergency Management, once more asked for additional time to present an exact figure concerning the fatalities directly attributed to the hurricane.
“There is scattered data and we gather information from different platforms,” he emphasized.
One of the issues is that numerous individuals have not responded to the rescue teams’ contacts, as they are unwilling to provide information to the authorities. DeSantis commented on the challenge of validating a specific figure.
Meanwhile, distraught residents were rescuing the belongings they could find from their flooded homes and placing them on rafts and canoes as they waded through knee-deep waters.
Stevie Escudero lamented after inspecting his destroyed apartment in Fort Myers, with mud covering the kitchen floor and sticking to his sandals. I want to sit in the corner and cry. I don’t know what else I can do.
Ian’s whirlwind reached the shores of South Carolina on Friday, specifically in a small community called Georgetown, which is situated approximately 60 miles north of Charleston and adjacent to Winyah Bay.
The storm destroyed docks, including two connected to the popular resort of Myrtle Beach.
The authorities and volunteers continued to assess the damages as bewildered residents tried to comprehend what had happened.
As per the catastrophe projection company Karen Clark & Co., Hurricane Ian is believed to have resulted in “more than $100 billion in damages”, which includes $64 billion in losses covered by private insurance. The company consistently publishes estimates for catastrophes.