Citizen Journalist: hurricane ian

Thursday, September 29, 2022

Hurricane Ian flattens portions of the coast of Florida, wash away homes

The Category 4 hurricane Ian devastated Fort Myers Beach in Florida. There were abandoned vehicles in the roadway and debris of broken trees, boat trailers etcetera on the road. The fierce winds flattened large portions of the seaside tourist town. The barrier islands along the southwest Florida coast are famous for their seashells, fishing and laid-back lifestyle. These took major hits with both Sanibel and Captiva isolated and cut off from vehicular traffic. This was because of collapse of the only bridge to the mainland. There was devastation at a mobile home park in Fort Myers Beach. The owners tried to salvage whatever was possible. Hurricane Ian sweeps away homes, memories on barrier islands. A family who owned a gas station business for two years lost it but felt it could recover the loss because the business had insurance.

The storm surge had lifted a dozen large boats. These were nearly 48 feet long and the storm carried those away across the parking lot and a four-lane road and deposited them in a mangrove preserve. The surge left signs of destruction all over the place. Life in the coastal region took a severe hit. As one affected person said - “I thought that given that I have a concrete home with hurricane shutters and storm-grade windows, everything would hold. …. And for the most part it did. We just didn’t think we’d get an 18-foot storm surge.” His home is more than a block from the beach and about 6 feet above sea level. It is also elevated so the living space is about 10 feet off the ground. However, these did not help. Obviously, the behavior of nature is unpredictable and the people have to suffer. This can be taken as a warning from Nature on the miseries that climate change can bring on humanity.

Tuesday, September 27, 2022

Hurricane Ian struck the western tip of the island, left millions of Cubans without power and is headed towards Florida

The hurricane knocked out power across all of Cuba. Initially, there was loss of power in the western provinces, but later the entire grid collapsed. That meant nearly 11 million people were left without electricity. Hurricane Ian made landfall as a Category 3 storm and devastated Pinar del Rio province. That meant destruction of large numbers of the country's most important tobacco farms. The authorities had to arrange evacuation of tens of thousands of people as the disaster left behind damaged houses and floods. The US National Hurricane Center said Cuba suffered "significant wind and storm surge impacts." The hurricane had struck with top sustained winds of 125mph and it could gain strength as it moves over the Gulf of Mexico and nears the southwestern coast of Florida. Already orders are given for millions of people of Florida to leave. Hurricane Ian leaves 11 million in Cuba without electricity as it heads towards Florida. Warning is given to residents as well as holidaymakers to take precautions and not be complacent. This is because the hurricane could become a Category 4 storm, with wind speeds of 140mph across the whole state.

Deanne Criswell, spokeswoman for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), held an emergency briefing at the White House. She summed up the grim situation and said - “The storm surge is going to be significant, and you put 20 inches of rain on top of that…. We are talking about impacts in parts of Florida that haven't seen a major direct impact in nearly 100 years." Incidentally, Hurricane Ian is heading towards the Florida Keys. This is a popular holiday destination consisting several islands, some less than a mile wide. US President Joe Biden cancelled a planned trip and called mayors in three Florida cities to assure them federal support is ready to deploy food, fuel and shelter. FEMA has already set up 29 emergency community shelters. Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida, has declared a state of emergency and urged residents to be prepared. There are predictions of floods for much of the Florida peninsula midweek. This could lead to heavy rainfall for the southeast of the US later this week.