MIAMI — Hurricane Ian is quickly weakening as it treks up toward Central Florida, downgrading to a Category 2 — marking the beginning of the end for the historic storm that crashed ashore near Punta Gorda with 150 mph winds just hours earlier.
However, southwest Florida is still being pounded with “catastrophic” flooding, winds and a dozen feet of storm surge. Ian brought record-breaking storm surge highs for Key West, Fort Myers and Naples several feet above previous high water marks.
Numerous videos posted on the internet show torrents of seawater rapidly filling streets in Sanibel, Fort Myers Beach and Naples — washing away stop signs, cars, boats and homes. Entire city blocks were submerged Wednesday afternoon, and forecasters noted the worst of the surge was yet to come.
