this is by far the worst storm i ve ever witnessed. there s just debris everywhere. my yard looks like a war zone. this was a bad. one ian was bad, so if it was tough on our region, will be actually looking at this for many years to come. good evening once again. i m stephanie ruhle. hurricane ian is now threatening georgia and the carolinas and it s expected to make landfall just a few hours from now. this is what eon did to southwest florida after it slammed into the coast over 24 hours ago, totaling 115 miles per hour winds and catastrophic storm surge. at least one many people have been reported killed, and brought epic rain and flooding to the central part of the state. hundreds of people have been rescued, that work continues overnight. over 2 million homes and businesses are without power. today president biden visited fema s headquarters in washington, d.c. and said federal aid is on its way to florida. this could be the deadliest hurricane in florida s histor
our thoughts remain with those impacted by hurricane ian. for those who need help, please ask for it. and if you can give help, please, give it. on that note, i wish you all a very good and safe night. from all of our colleagues across the networks of nbc news, thanks for staying up late with us. i will see you at the end of tomorrow. when hurricane ian came ashore yesterday afternoon and what was one of the stronger storms to ever hit the united states, period, and after a terrifying night in southwest florida daylight today brought harrowing evidence of the destruction of a storm like that brings. this is fort myers beach, one of the barrier ion islands that in slammed into as a near category five storm. for the hurricane it was a popular beach destination full of resorts and restaurants. as you can, see much of it has been leveled. when local resident told his local tape paper, quote, fort myers beach is gone. this is the causeway leading to sandoval island, just west of
at least 12 people have been reported killed, and it brought epic rain and flooding to the central part of the state. hundreds of people have been rescued, that work continues overnight. over 2 million homes and businesses are without power. today president biden visited fema s headquarters in washington, d. c. and said federal aid is on its way to florida. this could be the deadliest hurricane in florida s history. when conditions allow it, i ll gonna be going to florida. will you be talking to florida ron desantis when you re down there? the answer is yes if he wants to see. let s go right to nbc meteorologist, michelle grossman. i know michelle, that we got the 11 pm update from the national weather center just moments ago. what did you learn? hi there stephanie great to see you. well it s strengthened even further, so back to a category one storm. we re looking at 80 mile per hour winds. it did weaken earlier this morning to a tropical storm, dropped into the at
i was on the police department for 25 years, saw a lot of storms here. this is by far the worst storm i have ever witnessed. i promise you, i m never going to sit through another storm ever again here. i am one of the lucky ones. just some of the survivors of hurricane ian after the storm decimated wide sections of florida, and now the storm is on track to make a second u.s. landfall threatening the carolinas and georgia. good morning, and welcome to morning joe, it is friday, september 30th. joe is off this morning, but we ll get right to the latest with ian. intensing into a hurricane again, heading to south carolina after leaving a trail of devastation in florida. it is expected to make landfall near charleston around noon today as a category 1 storm. the national hurricane center is warning it could unleash life threatening storm surge, floods and strong winds. a state of emergency is in place for the carolinas, georgia and virginia. the damage from hurricane ian is
we re just helping some people through the water here. that s our camera operator. reporter: in orlando that piggy back of a lifetime for a local reporter for a nurse whose car became stuck on the way to work. and it s not just people who are in need to have assistance. a shivering cat rescued from rising waters and this good boy was carried out of the waves and wind, help is coming from far and wide. i ve come down here to check the area. reporter: deputy jason patch is from york town, virginia, he came across a man stranded on the roof of his truck. hi called for help and an airboat was dispatched and while we are just scratching the surface of the heart ache and damage that ian inflicted, time and time again, we are seeing humanity at its best. lester holt reporting. we always marvel at the heroism shown by first responders and regular people helping out after these storms. when we come back, we will take a turn to politics before we