Hurricane Ian has been downgraded to a post-tropical cyclone since making landfall in South Carolina, but the full scale of its impact is yet to be assessed.
Roads were flooded with water and encumbered by trees as Ian slammed into South CarolinaImage: Meg Kinnard/Apicture alliance
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Hurricane Ian barreled north Friday, making a second landfall in South Carolina, two days after carving a path of destruction across central Florida.
Ian was upgraded to a Category 1 hurricane as it churned toward the Carolinas, with maximum sustained wind speeds of 85 miles per hour (140 kilometers per hour), the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.
After making landfall, the storm was downgraded from a hurricane to a post-tropical cyclone as it moved across South Carolina.
Hours before it made landfall on Friday afternoon, South Carolina's entire coastline was placed on alert, with authorities advising people to seek higher ground.
The warning stretched from the Savannah River to Cape Fear, with flooding rains likely across the Carolinas and southwestern Virginia, the NHC said.
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Ian's trail of destruction
Ian was one of the most powerful storms to have struck the US in recent times, with President Joe Biden saying Thursday that it could be the deadliest hurricane in Florida's history.
At least 17 people have been killed by the hurricane so far, according to media reports.
Officials expect the death toll to rise as rescue teams reach affected areas, especially along Florida's Gulf Coast.
Kevin Guthrie, director of Florida's Division of Emergency Management, put the potential death toll at 21.
He said that some 10,000 people in Florida were unaccounted for, although many of them were likely in shelters or without power and unable to contact relatives.
Shortly before Ian made landfall in Florida on Wednesday, a boat carrying migrants sank, leaving 23 people missing and four survivors.
Florida: Deadly Hurricane Ian leaves trail of destruction
It is considered to be the strongest hurricane to hit Florida in centuries. Ian caused widespread destruction and flooding along the west coast. The exact number of fatalities is still unknown.
Image: MARCO BELLO/REUTERS
A field of debris
Hurricane Ian hit the offshore islands of Sanibel with full force. In Fort Myers, a popular residential area on Florida's west coast, the first images after the storm resemble a field of debris. There are still no exact figures on fatalities. US President Joe Biden said: "This could be the deadliest hurricane in Florida’s history."
Image: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Cut off from the mainland
The strong waves destroyed the bridges and roads to the island of Sanibel, cutting it off from the mainland. How many people remain on the completely destroyed island, which is not protected by dikes, is still unclear.
Image: SHANNON STAPLETON/REUTERS
The morning after
The day after the devastating storm, people are getting a sense of the situation. There are motorboats that were washed ashore by the flooding and are now waiting to be recovered. Most of them are probably a write-off. Governor Ron DeSantis spoke of damage of "historic" proportions and flooding that only occurs "once every 500 years."
Image: Sean Rayford/Getty Images
Many houses can't be saved
Fort Meyers was hit particularly hard. Beautiful houses and green spaces were destroyed, in some cases so badly that many will not be able to return to their homes. "Ian" is expected to make the list of the five most severe hurricanes in Florida. "We’ve never seen a flood event like this," Governor DeSantis said.
Image: SHANNON STAPLETON/REUTERS
Many businesses facing closure
In Bonita Springs, Jason Crosser and his wife Erica sit in front of his completely destroyed video game store, 8-Bit Hall of Fame. He says he owned inventory worth about $2 million, but was only insured up to $150,000. Many people will have to rebuild everything and many also lost all memories along with their homes.
Image: Sean Rayford/Getty Images
Difficult rescue operations
Many houses are still flooded. Helpers are having a hard time getting to everyone who may still be trapped somewhere. Here in Kissimmee, National Guardsmen help evacuate a nursing home hit by the floods. Also, more than two million households were temporarily without power, the website Poweroutage showed.
Image: JOE SKIPPER/REUTERS
Saving what can be saved
Mike McPhillips is in San Carlos Island trying to salvage and sort out his trawling lines. While west coast residents are still trying to save what can be saved after the initial shock, Hurricane Ian moved on and set course for North Carolina. It is now reported to have gone back up to magnitude 5.
Image: Win McNamee/Getty Images
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'Herculean effort'
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said Friday that rescue crews had gone door-to-door to over 3,000 homes in the hardest-hit areas.
"There's really been a Herculean effort,'' he said during a news conference in Tallahassee.
Earlier, he described how thousands of personnel were assigned to respond to the storm with 250 aircraft, 300 boats and 1,600 high-water vehicles.
Biden issued a federal disaster declaration, allowing federal aid to be provided to Florida.
Hurricane intensified after hitting Cuba
Ian had battered Cuba as a Category 3 storm just less than 24 hours before nearing Florida.
At least three people were killed on the island.
Scientists have long sounded the alarm over how climate change can increase the intensity of extreme weather events.
Blackout in Cuba after category 3 Ian hits
Hurricane Ian hit Cuba with great force. The category 3 storm caused immense damage and a power outage across the country. Meanwhile Ian has been upgraded to a category 4 storm and is approaching Florida.
Image: ALEXANDRE MENEGHINI/REUTERS
Deserted streets
The streets of the Cuban city of Pinar del Rio are empty. The storm made landfall in western Cuba as a category 3 hurricane at about 5 a.m. Tuesday (local time). It caused great destruction. Torn off corrugated iron roofs were swept into power lines.
Image: ALEXANDRE MENEGHINI/REUTERS
Electrical services interrupted
Electrical transformers litter this street in Pinar del Rio. People passing by survey the extent of the destruction. The hurricane caused flooding throughout the island, buildings and infrastructure facilities were severely damaged, and trees were uprooted. No deaths or injuries have been reported so far.
Image: ALEXANDRE MENEGHINI/REUTERS
Through the storm
This passerby used a plastic tarp as protection from the driving rains. In the province of Pinar del Rio alone, 40,000 people had to leave their homes as a precaution. Nearby Artemisa and Havana also reported severe damage. The full extent is not yet clear.
Image: ALEXANDRE MENEGHINI/REUTERS
Flooded land
Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel has visited the worst-hit region, according to state media. In view of the general shortage of many types of food and other basic necessities, Cubans were left with little more than makeshift preparations.
Image: REUTERS
Blackout across Cuba
Hurricane Ian caused blackouts across the country. Cuba's power grid is considered dilapidated, and the infrastructure is outdated. Communication with people affected by the blackout was limited; according to reports on state television, internet access and telephone connections also didn't work in some places.
Image: YAMIL LAGE /AFP via Getty Images
Taking stock
A Cuban family assesses what Ian left of their house after the hurricane tore off the roof. According to the Cuban Meteorological Office, Ian was the 12th recorded category 3 hurricane to hit Cuba this season. Climate change does not necessarily cause tropical cyclones to occur more frequently, but it does cause stronger ones, experts warn.
Image: REUTERS
The aftermath
The skies over Havana are slowly clearing. With wind speeds of up to 225 kilometers per hour (140 miles per hour), Hurricane Ian is now headed to Florida. Governor Ron DeSantis and US President Joe Biden have declared a state and federal emergency, and 2.5 million people have already had to leave their homes and apartments on the orders of the authorities.
