At least two people have died on a remote Florida island after Hurricane Ian tore through the area cutting it off from US mainland.
The devastating category 4 storm destroyed multiple parts of the causeway, which is the only road to and from the barrier islands of Sanibel and Captiva
Dozens of people remain stranded on Sanibel Island and mayor has urged everyone to leave as soon as possible. When asked if the city is currently liveable, the mayor said, “Frankly, no.", reports CNN.
Twelve people have been rescued off Sanibel Island with injuries and about 40 people were rescued unharmed. Sadly two fatalities have been reported.
In a message to beleaguered residents from Sanibel Mayor Holly Smith published by NBC-2, Ms Smith said: "Boats are in the water and now heading to or are on island for search and rescue. All individuals on the island need to be taken off."
Sanibel resident Kim Carman was among those who evacuated before the storm hit.
She said: “It’s total devastation. I never dreamed I’d see anything like this in my lifetime. Especially on Sanibel.
"You look at it and it does not look real, it is just so overwhelming.”
She continued: “I don’t think any of us have totally processed it yet."
Rescue teams were helicoptered in to the islands, going door to door to check on residents..
Around 6,400 people lived in the City of Sanibel and the islands are a popular tourist destination with a number of hotels and resorts.
The extent of the damage in Florida, where Ian first came ashore on Wednesday as one of the most powerful storms ever to hit the US mainland, became more apparent on Thursday as emergency crews began reaching stranded residents.
NBC News reported at least 10 people had died, while CNN put the toll at 17 as of Thursday evening.
At an evening news briefing, Governor Ron DeSantis acknowledged some people had perished but declined to confirm a specific figure, saying that official confirmation was still needed.
"We fully expect to have mortality from this hurricane," he said.
Some of the damage to coastal towns, including Fort Myers Beach, was "indescribable," added DeSantis, who surveyed the affected areas from the air on Thursday.
Earlier on Thursday, President Joe Biden warned Ian could prove to be the deadliest hurricane in Florida history, saying preliminary reports suggested a "substantial" loss of life.
More than 2.3 million homes and businesses remained without power on Thursday evening, according to the tracking website PowerOutage.us.
Hundreds of miles of coastline, stretching from Georgia to North Carolina, was under a hurricane warning as officials urged residents to prepare for dangerous conditions.
