Hurricane Ian Weakens To Category 3 And Barrels Through Inland Florida

Topline

Hurricane Ian weakened to Category 3 status Wednesday evening as it tore across inland Florida from the Gulf of Mexico to the Atlantic Ocean, leaving more than 1.8 million Floridians without electricity and unloading intense rainfall, 12-foot storm surges and 115 mph winds.

Hurricane Ian is 60 miles off the coast of Naples, Florida

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Key Facts

As of 8 p.m., the eye of Hurricane Ian was in a sparsely populated inland area about 40 miles north of Fort Myers, Florida, five hours after the storm initially made landfall on a Gulf Coast barrier island near the city of Cape Coral, the National Hurricane Center said.

Maximum sustained wind speeds stand at around 115 mph, a decrease from the 150 mph Category 4 winds recorded at the time of landfall.

The NHC says “catastrophic” storm surges, flash floods and wind are expected on the Gulf Coast, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said he has received “some reports of structural damage” in Lee and Charlotte counties, which contain Fort Myers and Punta Gorda, respectively.

DeSantis said the storm surges had “likely peaked” by Wednesday evening, but the hurricane will still cause widespread damage as it slowly moves across Florida toward the Atlantic, with the NHC forecasting more than 12 inches of total rainfall for central and northeastern Florida along with severe wind and possible tornadoes Wednesday night.

Just over 1.8 million people in Florida lack electricity, according to tracking service Poweroutage.us, including virtually all power customers in coastal Lee County and Charlotte County.

Most of Lee County is under a curfew that started at 6 p.m. and will stretch “until further notice,” while Charlotte County will enter an overnight curfew at 9 p.m., with violations treated as misdemeanors, and Collier County—which includes the Gulf Coast city of Naples—says it will impose a nighttime curfew starting at 10 p.m.

NHC Director Jamie Rhome advised residents who ignored evacuation orders not to go outside, as the hurricane brought 12-foot storm surges to some areas, and the National Weather Service in Tampa urged residents who did not evacuate to treat the storm like an approaching tornado and to “move immediately to an interior room or shelter NOW!”.

What To Watch For

Ian’s path. The storm is moving north-northeast at about 8 mph, and it’s expected to reach the Atlantic Ocean by late Thursday, with hurricane warnings already in effect for Daytona Beach and Cape Canaveral and evacuation orders in place for some low-lying parts of eastern Florida. Heavy rainfall is expected across the peninsula through Thursday, possibly causing “life-threatening catastrophic flooding” even as the storm weakens, according to the NHC. After crossing Florida, Ian is projected to move north toward the Georgia and South Carolina coastline. Hurricane watches are currently in place for the Atlantic Coast in parts of Florida, Georgia and South Carolina, and tropical storm watches and warnings extend all the way to the southern edge of North Carolina’s Outer Banks.

Key Background

Hurricane Ian ripped through western Cuba Tuesday, killing at least two and causing widespread flooding and a total blackout across the entire island. As it approached Florida, DeSantis warned “there’s going to be a lot of fallout in terms of getting people back on their feet.” More than 2.5 million residents across four counties—including in Tampa, St. Petersburg and Fort Myers—have been ordered to evacuate, while schools, hospitals and two major airports in the Tampa Bay area, as well as the Orlando International Airport, announced they would temporarily close.

Tangent

Some Florida residents who defied evacuation orders and remained in their homes have called 911, but DeSantis says first responders will likely wait until conditions become less dangerous. “By and large, until the storm passes, they are not going to go into a situation for rescue and put their own folks at risk,” the governor said in a Wednesday press conference.

Crucial Quote

“Please, stay indoors, stay away from windows, get to an interior location of your house,” Florida Division of Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie warned Floridians in a press conference Wednesday morning.