FORT MYERS, Fla. — As Ian continued its destructive trek across Florida, over a million households across the state awoke on Thursday without electricity as residents and emergency crews along the Gulf Coast began to assess the toppled buildings, flooded streets and crippled infrastructure.
Across Southwest Florida, where Hurricane Ian made landfall as one of the most powerful storms to ever hit the United States, the scenes of devastation were jarring. While there were likely to be deaths across Florida — at least one man was reported killed in Deltona — the number was unclear on Thursday morning.
A chunk of the causeway to Sanibel Island, the normally idyllic barrier island, was completely severed, making passage across the water impossible. Exactly how many people, if any, remained stranded on the barrier islands was unclear. The mainland road leading to the causeway was folded up like an accordion, a spiral staircase deposited by the winds into the brush next to a pickup truck.
