"Tremendous amount of damage" across western Charlotte County in Florida, commissioner says

Table Of Content

• Biden warns energy companies not to use Ian as an excuse to hike prices
• Ian is tied for the fifth-strongest hurricane by wind speed in U.S. history
• The eye of dangerous category 4 Hurricane Ian nears southwest Florida
• Study first to use LiDAR, aerial imagery to remotely assess structural damage and beach structural changes
• How to prepare for and stay safe during a power outage
• Life-threatening storm surge, hurricane conditions are forecast to hit the Carolinas by afternoon
• North Carolina's governor urges residents to stay aware and prepare ahead of Ian
• North Carolina Emergency Response prepares for storm

Almost 20% of Florida Power & Light's tracked customers were without electricity early Friday, according to PowerOutage.us. Florida Power & Light, the state's largest energy provider, said in a tweet that storm conditions are making repairs difficult. Earlier on Thursday, the amount of customers reported to be in the dark reached as high as 2.6 million. Flooding rains will also likely begin soaking the Carolinas and southern Virginia, according to the forecast. Public works crews have started to open up major roads in Charlotte County, Truex said.

Biden warns energy companies not to use Ian as an excuse to hike prices

Unrelenting and devastating floodwaters continue to pummel Naples, up through Fort Myers, the islands of Sanibel and Captiva, and into Charlotte County. Photos and videos on Twitter show waters at or above roofs in some areas. Cars have floated away, roofs have ripped off and some houses have lifted off their foundations. The hurricane’s outer bands continue to fling tornadoes which are on the ground for brief periods of time.

Ian is tied for the fifth-strongest hurricane by wind speed in U.S. history

Walt Disney World says it plans to reopen its theme park and resorts in a phased approach starting Friday as weather conditions improve. In southwest Florida, roughly 15 to 20 facilities are without power, but do have generators that are operating, Knapp said. “Our hearts are with our heroic caregivers who have been working around the clock to keep their residents safe which is always the top priority,” association spokesperson Kristen Knapp told NPR. Ian is expected to make landfall in South Carolina on Friday afternoon. “Pure wind damage, you know, is really more just restoration,” John Ketchum, the chief executive of FP&L’s parent company, NextEra Energy, said at an investor conference on Thursday.

The eye of dangerous category 4 Hurricane Ian nears southwest Florida

Hurricane Ian victims suing their insurance company for underpaying damage claim - ABC Action News Tampa Bay

Hurricane Ian victims suing their insurance company for underpaying damage claim.

Posted: Tue, 16 May 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

Catastrophic storm surge, heavy rain and 150 mph winds wiped out or damaged structures as well as some roads and bridges, with the Fort Myers area particularly impacted. Widespread rainfall amounts of two to six inches are expected across North Carolina going into early Saturday with locally higher totals up to eight inches. This rainfall could lead to flash flooding, coastal storm surge, landslides in the mountains and rising rivers.

Study first to use LiDAR, aerial imagery to remotely assess structural damage and beach structural changes

The NHC warns that the stretch of coast from Englewood to Bonita Beach could see storm surge of up to 18 feet if peak surge happens at the same time as high tide. Three weeks after the storm hit, power's on, most schools are back, and parks are reopening. But getting the internet and cell phone service fully restored has been a challenge, and 70 residents continue to live in an emergency shelter. At least 6.6 inches of rain had fallen in the county, according to Kirsten Livengood, a spokeswoman for the county, where the waters rose two feet higher than normal. Several cruise lines, including Royal Caribbean, said they had to reroute their ships to avoid the storm, forcing some passengers to spend an extra night at sea.

Ian Port Charlotte Damage From Above - Videos from The Weather Channel - The Weather Channel

Ian Port Charlotte Damage From Above - Videos from The Weather Channel.

Posted: Thu, 29 Sep 2022 07:00:00 GMT [source]

How to prepare for and stay safe during a power outage

Overall, 734 buildings had 30 to 50 percent structural damage, the majority of which were single-family and multi-unit residences. Researchers identified 158 buildings that were severely damaged with partial or complete roof failure. In the aftermath of a disaster, rapidly assessing damage is critical for rescue, recovery and emergency planning. Damage assessments are typically conducted through field reconnaissance deployments, which can be labor-intensive, costly and risky. Moreover, field-based emergency response assessments can be hindered by delays and other setbacks due to the severity of the damage and the inability to access the hardest hit areas. Of all the claims in Florida filed following the hurricane, 529,869 claims were closed with payment (about 68%), while 198,028 were closed without payment (25%).

Lee County includes the hard-hit cities of Fort Myers and Cape Coral. Many houses in the area are barely above sea level, especially in Cape Coral, where homes are arranged along a network of canals. In a release tweeted Thursday morning, officials say airport maintenance and operations staff inspected the facilities Thursday morning and did not discover any serious damage as a result of the storm. State officials are urging residents in low-lying areas prone to flooding, particularly along the coast, to have a plan to evacuate to higher ground if their homes become unsafe. Ketchum, NextEra’s CEO, said overhead power lines that deliver electricity to people’s homes — known as distribution lines — are the most vulnerable parts of the system. Ian made landfall more than 100 miles (160 kilometers) south of Tampa and St. Petersburg, sparing the densely populated Tampa Bay area from its first direct hit by a major hurricane since 1921.

North Carolina's governor urges residents to stay aware and prepare ahead of Ian

He and his wife had been contemplating a return to North Carolina after the pandemic brought a surge of growth and congestion to Cape Coral. The Southwest Florida International Airport in Fort Myers canceled all flights on Thursday, while the Orlando International Airport ceased flight operations. Storms are beginning to lash the South Carolina and North Carolina coasts early Friday as Hurricane Ian advances north from the Atlantic Ocean. Charlotte County received about "300 triage 911 calls" during Hurricane Ian as crews were unable to respond due to dangerous conditions, according to county commissioner Bill Truex. Florida Power and Light, the state's largest utility, is deploying a drone bigger than a private plane to assess the damage from above and has warned that structural damage could take days or weeks to repair.

This image is strikingly similar to one shared when zookeepers at ZooMiami — then Miami Metrozoo — scrambled to create a hurricane shelter for their flamingos in a restroom after the storm demolished their habitat. Gov. Ron DeSantis said the state had around 42,000 crew members on standby to help restore power when the conditions were safe. Data shared by meteorologist Philip Klotzbach of Colorado State University shows Ian tied for fifth place among hurricanes by landfall wind speed. Hurricane Ian is one of the strongest hurricanes by wind speed that’s ever made landfall in recorded U.S. history.

"And there are multiple volunteer agencies that are staged and prepared to perform feeding operations as soon as it is safe to do so." Nine hospitals in Lee County lost water as a result of the storm, according to FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell. Tampa Airport officials urge passengers who are flying out on Friday to arrive at least two hours before their scheduled departure. You can monitor the social media accounts of the National Hurricane Center and National Weather Service. Sunday night’s NFL game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Kansas City Chiefs will go on as scheduled in Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla.

Friday afternoon sessions at the Mecklenburg County Courthouse scheduled for Friday have been canceled. Conditions deteriorated quickly along the South Carolina coast Friday morning. Meanwhile, Jim Erbs was at Charlotte-Douglas International Airport on Saturday afternoon waiting to pick up his wife, who was flying in from Orlando. Saturday morning, debris was visible in the Myers Park neighborhood and the Little Sugar Creek Greenway, but much of it amounted to small branches and tree leaves.