TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday morning said it was no longer safe for people to evacuate Floridians’ southwest coast and urged them to “hunker down” as Hurricane Ian prepared to make landfall in the afternoon.
“It is no longer possible to safely evacuate,” he said. “It’s time to hunker down and prepare for this storm. This is a powerful storm that should be treated like you would treat if a tornado was approaching your home.”
Ian strengthened overnight into an extremely dangerous Category 4 hurricane, packing sustained winds of up to 155 miles per hour. The highest-risk areas are ranging from Collier County up to Sarasota County, DeSantis said.
