Alexis Guilleux (US correspondent), edited by Romain Rouillard with AFP
The weather is currently unleashed in Florida. This Wednesday, a hurricane named Ian and classified in category 4 out of 5 crashes on the coasts of this eastern American state. Obviously with catastrophic consequences for the areas located on the front line, especially since it is now too late to evacuate. For several hours, violent winds and intense rains have been battering the region.
And it will get worse in the next few hours, with gusts reaching 250 km / h in southwest Florida. The potential rise in water levels is of particular concern in this region, whose land is very close to sea level. Around 8 p.m. French time, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) was already reporting “marine submersion” and “catastrophic floods”. In addition, the storm surge, ie the water pushed by the hurricane, could reach three to five meters high.
2.5 million people evacuated
Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida, repeated this Wednesday how seriously Ian had to be taken. “This is truly a major storm, one of those historic storms that leave an indelible memory. Ian is going to really shake up the people of Southwest Florida and have a profound impact on our state.
Ian will cross Florida from west to east, and has made landfall in the Sarasota area, south of Tampa. It should not reach the metropolis of Orlando until Thursday. A total of 2.5 million people have been ordered to evacuate, the equivalent of the cities of Paris and Nice combined. For all those who have chosen to stay, the authorities have appealed for calm and urged them to prepare as much as possible.
7,000 National Guard soldiers mobilized
In recent days, locals have scoured stores extensively, looking for supplies as businesses shore up with the help of sandbags and barricades. While 7,000 National Guard soldiers were positioned to intervene as soon as the hurricane passed, the first power cuts have already been recorded.
In addition, 23 migrants are missing off Florida. “Four Cuban migrants swam to shore after their boat sank due to bad weather. Coast Guard Sector Southeast has launched a search and rescue operation for 23 individuals,” a tweet read. Miami Sector Border Patrol Chief Walter Slosar