See The Floridians Livestreaming Hurricane Ian On Social Media

Topline

Photos and videos of Hurricane Ian have surged on social media over the past several days, especially on video app TikTok, where clips posted under the hashtag #HurricaneIan have garnered 3.5 billion views and brought new focus to those residents documenting their experiences of the historic storm.

Key Facts

TikTok users are posting updates of what their homes look like under heavy rain and wind and are using the platform to share tips and information on how to best prepare for hurricanes and stay safe, while residents who chose to evacuate have shared how they prepared their home for the storm.

While some of the users creating Hurricane Ian content are verified influencers, many of the most popular videos under #HurricaneIan and related hashtags are being posted by Florida residents without large social media followers.

Stephanie Moratto, a TikToker who says she lives in southwest Florida and already had a following for posting equestrian and barn content, is sharing updates about how the storm is affecting her farm (most recently, she showed her followers that her cows are doing fine).

Another user who identified herself as Holly Johnson documented leaving Charlotte County, Florida–parts of which are under a mandatory evacuation order–and shared videos of the storm and her family’s safe room in Cape Coral, Florida, that have more than 2 million views.

Livestreams of the storm are attracting thousands of concurrent viewers, and one such broadcast seen by NBC News had 55,000 viewers at one time.

On Instagram, more than 65,000 posts have been tagged with #HurricaneIan.

Tangent

It’s unclear how social media platforms are handling content posted from potentially dangerous situations–like from users who did not follow evacuation orders–and whether those posts will be recommended to users. TikTok’s community guidelines bar users from “depicting, promoting, normalizing or glorifying dangerous acts that may lead to serious injury or death.” Instagram’s guidelines ban content “glorifying self-injury,” though the provision is usually used to remove content related to eating disorders and self-mutilation. TikTok and Meta, Instagram’s parent company, did not immediately respond to Forbes requests for comment.

Key Background

About 2.5 million residents of Florida’s Gulf Coast have been ordered to evacuate as Hurricane Ian draws nearer. The Category 4 storm is forecast to spark storm surge flooding between 12 and 18 feet and cause “catastrophic wind damage” along the southwestern coast of Florida. The storm previously passed through Cuba, where it killed at least two people and caused an island-wide power blackout. The storm is expected to escalate to a Category 5 hurricane, Florida Division of Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie warned Wednesday.

Further Reading

Hurricane Ian Live Updates: Cat 4 Storm Minutes Away From Landfall On Captiva Island (Forbes)

‘Rapidly Intensifying’: Hurricane Ian Could Strengthen To Category 5 Storm As It Approaches Florida (Forbes)