Rescuers evacuated stunned survivors on a large barrier island cut off by Hurricane Ian and Florida's death toll climbed sharply, as hundreds of thousands of people were still sweltering without power, days after the monster storm rampaged from the state's southwestern coast up to the Carolinas.
At least 35 people were confirmed because of Hurricane Ian, including 28 people in Florida mostly from drowning but others from the storm's tragic aftereffects.
Florida, with nearly four dozen reported dead, was hit hardest by the Category 4 hurricane, one of the strongest to make landfall in the United States.
In total, at least 73 people have died in the state due to the effects of Hurricane Ian. The highest number of deaths were in Lee County which jumped to 35 and.