FORT MYERS, Fla. — As Ian continued its destructive trek across Florida, roughly 2 million households across the state awoke on Thursday without electricity as the Gulf Coast began to assess leveled homes, flooded buildings and streets, and damaged or destroyed road and bridges.
Rescue crews also continued pulling people stranded on barrier islands — a task complicated on the popular tourist destinations of Sanibel and Captiva because a section of the only bridge linking them to the mainland had been washed away.
While there were likely to be deaths across Florida — at least two people may have died from storm — Gov. Ron DeSantis urged caution about early rumors of mass fatalities, saying rescuers were still responding to earlier 911 calls.
