Hurricane Ian: More than 700 rescues have taken place
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Hurricane Ian has brought stormy winds, rain and flooding to Florida, leading to a big search and rescue operation in the US state.
Florida governor Ron DeSantis said that more than 700 people had been rescued by the Coast Guard and other organisations following the storm.
The hurricane had been downgraded to a tropical storm, but the US's National Hurricane Center says they have upgraded it to a hurricane again as it regained strength on Thursday.
President of the United States, Joe Biden, warned the public that it "could be the deadliest hurricane in Florida's history".
So far there aren't any official figures, but 91Èȱ¬ News says that at least 10 people have lost their lives, with other news outlets saying the confirmed number is higher.
91Èȱ¬s and businesses without power
Hurricane Ian made arrived on land in the United States on Wednesday, and has now moved over the Atlantic Ocean heading towards the state of South Carolina.
Before arriving in the US it had battered the Caribbean country of Cuba, leaving the country's total population of 11 million without electricity.
More than 2.2 million electricity customers in Florida have also lost power.
Officials said that flood waters have risen meaning that some people are trapped in their homes.
Some residents say they have had to swim away from their homes because of flooding
Fort Myers is thought to be one of the worst areas affected by the storm.
Florida's governor, Ron DeSantis, spoke at a news conference on Thursday, saying: "I would say the most significant damage that I saw was on Ford Myers Beach.
About a block from the beachfront, some roads remain impassable and underwater, while others have been left covered in mud as the water slowly recedes.
Some of the homes were wiped out, some of it was just concrete slabs.
Some people living in the areas said they had had to swim away from their homes, due to the high waters.
In a post to social media on Thursday, Fort Myers authorities are encouraging people in Fort Myers to boil water.
Boiling water kills germs and can make it safe for use for cleaning and drinking.
Rescue operation underway
Rescues crews have been going out in the air, on land and in boats.
The Florida Department of Emergency Management shared a post on social media saying they had rescued more than 500 people from two different counties by 2pm on Thursday.
The US's National Guard has been going door to door in the city of Orlando to help people who might be stranded by the floodwater.
The director of Florida's Division of Emergency Management asked people to be still be careful, even if Hurricane Ian has already passed through their area.
Officials are warning residents not to try and fix damaged power lines by themselves
He said that people should watch out for broken power lines that have become caught in trees, and advised people not to try and fix electricity connections themselves.
He added: "If you do not know how to use a chainsaw, if you do not know how to climb a ladder, if you do not know the difference between a cable line and a power line, you should not be doing that."
Millions of children in Florida have are thought to have missed school this week, with the majority of Florida's public school districts closed for at least a day.
The coast of South Carolina, where Hurricane Ian is expected to land next, is under a hurricane warning.
In Puerto Rico, a massive clean-up effort is still going on, after the hurricane hit the Caribbean island last week.
There was also a power blackout there, and ten days on, more than 269,000 households are still without electricity.
- Published31 August 2023
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