CHARLESTON, South Carolina –
A revived Hurricane Ian slammed into coastal South Carolina on Friday, wrecking docks and filling neighborhoods with calf-deep water, after the deadly storm caused catastrophic damage in Florida and trapped thousands in their homes.
The center of Ian made landfall near Georgetown with much weaker winds than when it crossed Florida’s Gulf Coast on Wednesday as one of the strongest storms to hit the US.
Sheets of rain battered trees and power lines and left many areas of the central Charleston peninsula under water. Four piers along the coast, including two in Myrtle Beach, collapsed in the rough waves and were swept away. Online cameras showed seawater filling Garden City neighborhoods to calf level.
Ian left a wide swath of destruction across Florida, flooding areas on both coasts, ripping homes off their slabs, demolishing waterfront businesses and leaving more than 2 million people without power. At least nine people have been confirmed dead in the US, a number expected to rise as authorities confirm more deaths and search for people.
Rescuers piloted boats and walked along riverside streets Thursday to save thousands of people trapped between flooded homes and shattered buildings.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Friday that crews had gone door-to-door to more than 3,000 homes in the hardest-hit areas.
“There really has been a Herculean effort,” he said during a news conference in Tallahassee.
Among the dead were an 80-year-old woman and a 94-year-old man who relied on oxygen machines that stopped working amid power outages, as well as a 67-year-old man who was waiting to be rescued and fell into rising water. inside his home, authorities said.
Authorities fear the death toll could rise substantially, given the vast territory inundated by the storm.
Florida Division of Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie said first responders have so far focused on “rush” searches, aimed at emergency rescues and initial assessments, to be followed by two additional waves of searches. Initial rescuers coming across possible wreckage are leaving it unconfirmed, he said Friday, citing the case of a submerged house as an example.
“The water was over the roof to the right, but we had a Coast Guard rescue swimmer swim into it and he was able to identify what appeared to be human remains. We don’t know exactly how many,” Guthrie said.
Desperate to locate and rescue their loved ones, social media users shared phone numbers, addresses and photos of their family and friends online for anyone to verify.
Orlando residents returned to their flooded homes Friday, rolling up their pants to walk knee-deep in muddy streets. Ramón Rodríguez’s friends left ice, bottled water and hot coffee at the entrance to his subdivision, where 10 of the 50 houses were flooded and the road looked like a lake. He had no electricity or food in his house, and his car was trapped by water.
“There is water everywhere,” Rodriguez said. “The situation here is pretty bad.”
University of Central Florida students living in an apartment complex near the Orlando campus arrived to retrieve their belongings from their flooded units.
Deandra Smith, a nursing student, was asleep when others evacuated and stayed in her third-floor apartment with her dog. Other students helped her get to dry land Friday by pushing her across the flooded parking lot on a pontoon boat. She wasn’t sure if she should return to her parents’ home in South Florida or seek shelter so she could continue attending school. “I’m still trying to figure it out,” she said.
Hours after weakening to a tropical storm as it crossed the Florida panhandle, Ian regained strength Thursday night over the Atlantic. Ian made landfall in South Carolina with maximum sustained winds of 85 mph (140 km/h). When it hit Florida’s Gulf Coast on Wednesday, it was a powerful 150 mph (240 km/h) Category 4 hurricane.
After the heaviest rains hit Charleston, Will Shalosky examined a large elm tree in front of his house that had fallen onto a downtown street. He pointed out that the damage could have been much worse.
“If this tree had fallen any other way, it would be in our house,” Shalosky said. “It’s pretty scary, pretty jarring.”
In North Carolina, strong bands of rain and strong winds crept into the state on Friday afternoon. Gov. Roy Cooper warned residents to be vigilant as up to 8 inches (20.3 centimeters) of rain could fall in some areas, with strong winds.
“Hurricane Ian is on our doorstep. Torrential rain and sustained high winds are expected across most of our state,” Cooper said. “Our message today is simple: be smart and be safe.”
In Washington, President Joe Biden said he was ordering that “every possible action be taken to save lives and help survivors.”
“It will take months, years to rebuild,” Biden said.
“I just want the people of Florida to know that we see what you’re going through and we stand with you.”
——
Gómez Licón reported from Punta Gorda, Florida; Associated Press contributors include Terry Spencer and Tim Reynolds in Fort Myers, Florida; Cody Jackson in Tampa, Florida; Freida Frisaro in Miami; Mike Schneider in Orlando, Fla.; Seth Borenstein in Washington; and Bobby Caina Calvan in New York.