it s the top of the hour on cnn newsroom. i m alisyn camerota in new york. hurricane ian has killed at least 13 people. it s the strongest storm to hit the west coast of florida in nearly 20 years. local officials say we should brace for that number of victims to rise. the life and death danger from ian continues as it pushes northeast, still pummelling florida. rescuers were pulling people from high water all day and night. survivors describe no time to wait as people had to carry children, as you can see, through chest-high waters. ian made landfall just west of cape coral. our cnn drone shows the devastation there. i mean obviously you can just see these are supposed to be streets, but they are completely flooded. nearby ft. myers and naples further south are both decimated. countless neighborhoods are still submerged in the floodwaters at this hour. the communities of sanibel and pine island are now cut off from the mainland after ian washed away parts of this causewa
looks like something fell hard on your carport. careful. i don t know if i can open it. is it unlocked? i ll help you. let me try. does it work from the inside? can you reach around? right over here. i think it s wedged against the frame. but you can careful. i got you. yeah. hold on to my arm. i got you. there you go. wow . wow. amazing. it s absolutely amazing what that water did. reporter: my goodness . this is disgusting. what do you think? done. reporter: i think so. i hate to say. i know you were so hopeful. as i said, there s people worse off than us. all those people out there on sanibel. all those people that don t have a second home to go to. wow. it s amazing too. reporter: isn t it? describe what you re stepping in here. it s just like muck. our thanks to bill weir for that report. i want to go live to orlando, florida now and cnn s ryan young. ryan, tell us what you re seeing there. reporter: yeah, jake, so much pain in this area. pe
begin to assess just how many lives have been lost. the high waters, homes, buildings and roads ripped apart, ongoing search and rescue missions, and the damage is not just along the coast. welcome to the lead, i m jake tapper. we start with the first look at the death and devastation left behind by hurricane ian across southwest and central florida. this same system first made landfall in cuba then onto florida s west coast. now ian is about to strengthen and make its third landfall. let s show you what ian has done already. this is fort myers beach this morning. chunks of metal and trees thrown across the streets, buildings ripped apart, cars destroyed a. resident who has lived there his entire life said this is the worst hurricane he s lived through. bear islands have been cut off near ft. myers. all the bridges have failed and massive sections of the sanibel causeway were washed away by the storm surge, severing the only connection they have to the florida mainland. s
today. authorities first responders and volunteers awaiting opportunity to rescue those in need and we are told there s many who need need. more than 2 million people without power as the damage assessments either are beginning or are about to begin. we ve got team coverage with fox contributor beginning west where hurricane ian is headed. good evening. hickam a trace. since we last spoke, the amount of people without power in orange county is more than double. overy 69,000 without power are in orange county and we are still waiting for the worst of what hurricane ian has to offer with this part of the state and we have seen the devastation in southwest florida. a place that i ve lived. the storms going to hit the orlando area like it is right now, possibly downgraded to a tropical storm but either way it s going to dump a lot of rain on these communities. over 40 inches expected with sustained winds of 75 miles per hour and we see it best right now. i want to show you if
threat across the state. residents are urged to stay inside. our team is on the ground and crews mobilize and janice dean is tracking ian in new york city. todd: lauren, we begin our coverage with you in st. pete. in st. pete beach, they were prepping for the worst, but it struck more southeast. let me show you what is looked like yesterday in the naples, fort myers area. ian came with category four, wind speeds 155 miles per hour, dropped a foot of rain and life-threatening storm surge turned roads into rivers and left homes on the other hand water. take a look at the radar, ian has weakened since making landfall as it moves to florida. latest update has it 75 miles per hour, making it a category one hurricane, officials warn communitiess in central and northern florida, they are still in danger from flooding and hard to process amounts of water. central and northeast florida, 12 to 20 inches of rain possible, some areas according to national hurricane center, looking at