More than two million Floridians were left without power last week after Hurricane Ian whipped the state's west coast.
According to PowerOutage.us, there were more than two million reported electricity outages as of Sept. 29. Other electricity providers such as Duke Energy, Florida Power and Light Company and Tampa Electric also reported blackouts. The Weather Channel pointed out that the millions of customers without power "is a major safety concern," as the hurricane could still batter other areas in the state. (Related: Hurricane Ian leaves 2.7 million Florida customers without power; significant casualties expected.)
The weaker Ian has been decreased to Category 1 after making landfall hours earlier over Florida Peninsula as a Category 4.
Meanwhile, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis ensured that assistance is ready as he had predicted that many would be impacted by Ian. Over 42,000 linemen were deployed to help restore power in affected areas across the state. The state government also has fleets of high-water vehicles to assist residents, as well as 7,000 National Guardsmen and 179 aircraft prepared to help.
The governor also reminded those who are going outside that power lines are currently down and may cause hazards. "After Hurricane Ian passes, be careful going outside. Make sure to avoid downed power lines, avoid standing water, stay clear of trees, do not drive in standing water, and keep generators 20 feet outside of your home," he posted on Twitter.
Moreover, he reached out to those not affected by the hurricane to help rebuild Florida by contributing to a disaster fund at FloridaDisasterFund.org or by texting "Disaster" to 20222.
Hurricane Ian's death toll in Florida now in triple digits
During a Sept. 30 press conference, Florida's Emergency Management Department Director Kevin Guthrie reported that the death toll from Hurricane Ian is already 21. Guthrie said at the time that rescuers have completed their initial quick search and have started more detailed search efforts that will likely see the death toll rising.
He was right as Hurricane Ian's death toll in Florida rose to at least 101 Monday, Oct. 3. At least 54 people were killed by the hurricane in Lee County alone.
On Sept. 29, DeSantis said more than 700 people had already been rescued from Charlotte and Lee Counties, the two worst hit areas. First responders tried to reach some of the earlier callers to check on them.
"We had a bunch of calls coming in when the storm was approaching, but we had to shut down 911 operations because we couldn't put our first responders on the roads during a hurricane event," Joseph Tiseo, a Charlotte County commissioner, said.
Survivors of the "brutal" Hurricane Ian described the traumatic experience they just went through. Some were trapped by the floods in their homes, facing life or death decisions as the water gushed in.
Janelle Thil of Fort Myers, Charlotte County, said she was forced to swim to safety when her ground-floor apartment began to flood. "[My neighbors] got my dogs and then I jumped out of the window and swam," the 42-year-old told news agency AFP.
In Orlando, about 14 inches of rain fell, with rescuers going door to door to get people out of their homes. "You have to either swim or drown," an Orlando resident told CBS News, adding that she escaped her home through a window.
"It was terrifying because you're helpless," Kim, who lives at the Sun Seekers mobile home park in Fort Myers, told the BBC. "We had no [phone] service to call anyone – but no one would have come anyway."
Visit Disaster.news for more updates related to tropical cyclones such as Hurricane Ian.
Watch the below video that talks about scalar waves creating Hurricane Ian.
This video is from the Prophecy Club channel on Brighteon.com.
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