Hurricane Ian batters the Gulf Coast

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Hurricane Ian hit Florida's Gulf Coast on Wednesday with howling winds, torrential rains and a surge of ocean surf that made it one of the most powerful U.S. storms in recent years.

A map of Florida, showing the potential of flooding above ground level. Flooding ranges between 0 feet to more than 9 feet above ground level. Hurricane Ian’s path from the bottom left to the top right of Florida, has resulted in the southwestern coast of Florida to be flooded.

Crashing ashore as a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of up to 150 miles per hour (241 kph), Ian quickly transformed a stretch of beaches and coastal towns into a disaster zone inundated by seawater.

The footage shows the camera filming the scene being blown over, flipping the view upside down due to strong winds.

Hurricane Ian relentlessly pounds Daytona Beach overnight, flips over camera. ABC AFFILIATE WFTV via Reuters

Early video images of the storm's fury on local TV and social media showed floodwaters sweeping away cars, nearly reaching rooftops in some communities and the ruins of homes as palm trees were bent almost in half.

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A flooded street is seen in downtown as Hurricane Ian makes landfall in southwestern Florida, in Fort Myers, Florida, U.S. September 28, 2022. REUTERS/Marco Bello

Traffic lights wave by strong gust of wind ahead of Hurricane Ian, in Fort Myers, Florida, U.S. September 28, 2022. REUTERS/Marco Bello

Fallen palm leaves and debris are seen in a street in downtown as Hurricane Ian makes landfall in southwestern Florida, in Fort Myers, Florida, U.S. September 28, 2022. REUTERS/Marco Bello

Rainfall, 24-Hour total as of Thursday morning

Ian slackened as it trekked across Florida but was still producing strong winds, heavy rains and storm surge.

Map of Florida showing the rainfall with over 8 inches in parts of the state

A map of Florida, showing the path of Hurricane Ian. The storm’s path is roughly from the bottom left to the top right of Florida.

By Thursday morning, Ian had weakened into a tropical storm and was trekking across Florida, leaving Gulf Coast residents to pick up the pieces.

But it was still expected to produce strong winds, heavy rains and storm surge across portions of Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.

Atlantic hurricanes of category 4 or stronger since 1980

Each hurricane is shown from time since becoming a tropical storm till landfall.

A line chart with hurricanes that were category 4 or higher. The Y axis shows wind speeds that determine the category of the hurricane from 40 mph to 157 mph. The X axis shows days the storm prevailed as it became a hurricane from a tropical storm.

“This storm is doing a number on the state of Florida,” said Governor Ron DeSantis, who asked U.S. President Joe Biden to approve a major federal disaster declaration providing a wide range of U.S. emergency aid to the entire state.

Edited by

Anand Katakam, Jon McClure, Angus MacSwan