As hurricane Ian pushed northwards, rescuers ramped up search operations for survivors among the ruins of Florida’s flooded home. The powerful storm terrorized millions of people this week as it raked across Florida before making its second U.S. landfall in South Carolina on Friday. At least 28 people died due to the storm.
As of Saturday morning, more than 1.2 million homes and commercial establishments remained gloomy as the power outage in Florida continued across the Carolinas and Virginia.
In South Carolina, Ian’s center came ashore near Georgetown, a small community along the Winyah Bay about 60 miles north of historic Charleston. The storm washed away parts of four piers along the coast, including two connected to the popular tourist town of Myrtle Beach.
According to the disaster modelling firm Karen Clark & Co., the catastrophic storm is likely to have caused over $100 billion in damage including $63 billion in privately insured losses.
Dozens of National Guardsmen arrived earlier Friday in North Port- about 85 miles (140 kilometers) south of Tampa in order to speed up efforts started Wednesday by firefighters from other states and counties. And city officials were scrambling to open an evacuation center at a high school.