2.5 million Floridians ordered to evacuate as Hurricane Ian barrels closer
TAMPA, Fla. – At least 2.5 million Floridians are currently under some type of evacuation order as Hurricane Ian rapidly intensified into a major hurricane on Tuesday.
"There's still uncertainty with where that exact landfall will be. But just understand, the impacts are going to be far, far broader than just where the eye of the storm happens to make landfall in some areas," Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said in a news conference Tuesday morning. "There will be catastrophic flooding and life-threatening storm surge."
Much of Florida's Gulf Coast is under either Hurricane Watches or Hurricane Warnings, including Tampa, Venice and Fort Myers, ahead of the expected wind, rain and storm surge from Hurricane Ian. Given Florida's unique coastline, the topography lends itself to the state being highly susceptible to storm-surge flooding during hurricanes.
Evacuations ordered along Florida's west coast
Several counties along Florida's west coast have already issued mandatory and voluntary evacuation orders, including Tampa Bay where 300,000 people alone are being told to evacuate their beachfront property as forecasters say storm surge will create massive problems for the state's third-largest metro area.
"In order to protect residents, we are issuing a mandatory evacuation order for Zone A, recommending a voluntary evacuation for Zone B and opening emergency shelters," Hillsborough County Administrator Bonnie Wise said.
According to the FOX Forecast Center, storm surge could reach as high as 10 feet along portions of Florida's west coast, though the entire western Florida coast is susceptible to some level of storm surge.
Storm surge is the rise of water levels caused directly by a storm and does not take into account rainfall or wave size, which can add additional feet on top of a storm's surge.
MORE 2.5 million Floridians ordered to evacuate as Hurricane Ian barrels closer
