CHARLESTON, S.C. — Ian has dropped from a hurricane to a post-tropical cyclone as it moved across South Carolina. Ian made another landfall, this time in South Carolina, after carving a swath of destruction across Florida earlier this week.
The U.S. National Hurricane Center says Ian’s center came ashore Friday afternoon near Georgetown with maximum sustained winds of 85 mph.
Ian hit Florida’s Gulf Coast as a powerful Category 4 hurricane with 150 mph (240 kph) winds Wednesday, flooding homes and leaving nearly 2.7 million people without power.
Live Hurricane Ian radar imagery:
2 million left without power in aftermath of Hurricane Ian
Almost 2 million people are without electricity in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian, which made landfall in Florida as a powerful Category 4 storm on Wednesday.
The website poweroutage.us, which tracks outages throughout the country, reported that more than 1.2 million Floridians remained without power as of Saturday morning, the most in the country. North Carolina has the second most with about 300,000, followed by Puerto Rico, where more than 200,000 people are still without power almost two weeks after Hurricane Fiona knocked out the island’s power grid.
After making landfall in southwestern Florida with maximum sustained winds of 150 miles per hour and causing intense flooding and storm surge, Ian went out over the Atlantic Ocean before returning to land in South Carolina as a Category 1 hurricane.
The storm became a post-tropical cyclone as it moved across the state, but more than 57,000 people are without power there as of Saturday. More than 94,000 people are also without power in Virginia.
Hurricane Ian knocked out the entire electrical grid in Cuba when it hit the island before reaching the United States. Power was restored in some parts of the country, but most remain without electricity, leading hundreds to take to the streets to protest the delays in restoring power.
Cubans protested in two spots of Havana’s Cerro neighborhood on Thursday and at least five locations in the city or its outskirts on Friday, according to The Associated Press.
Warnings for tropical-storm-force winds were expected to remain in place for coastal areas of the U.S. until at least Saturday morning, and considerable flooding will likely occur as a result of the tropical storm in parts of South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia.
– Jared Gans
Hurricane Ian downgraded to tropical storm after hitting South Carolina
The National Hurricane Center downgraded Hurricane Ian to a tropical storm on Friday, warning that severe winds and flooding can impact the coasts of North Carolina and South Carolina.
The “tropical-storm-force winds” warnings will be in place alongs the coasts at least until early Saturday morning.
There will also be “considerable flooding” in parts of South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia due to the tropical storm.
Florida will continue to see “major-to-record river flooding” through next week.
Power outages in North Carolina increase
Power outages have increased and some coastal rivers rose in North Carolina as heavy rain and winds from Hurricane Ian crept into the state Friday from the storm’s South Carolina landfall.
Gov. Roy Cooper says adjustments to the projected path of Ian could bring more trouble to central and eastern North Carolina than earlier believed. But he says the state’s emergency equipment and services have been staged to maximize flexibility.
He warns residents statewide to remain vigilant, given that up to 8 inches (20.3 centimeters) of rain could fall in some areas, with high winds.
More than 55,000 customers in North Carolina were without power as of mid-afternoon, according to PowerOutage.us, which aggregates outages nationwide.
–The Associated Press
Hurricane Ian destroys second South Carolina pier
A second pier in northern South Carolina has been destroyed by Hurricane Ian’s surge.
Local television footage showed the middle section of the Cherry Grove Pier near the North Carolina state line was washed away Friday afternoon by rising water and churning waves as Ian made landfall about 50 miles down the coast in Georgetown.
Earlier on Friday, a popular beach pier broke apart in the winds and rain accompanying Hurricane Ian’s arrival in South Carolina.
The Pawleys Island Police Department said in a tweet Friday that a portion of the Pawleys Island pier had “collapsed” and was floating south.
https://twitter.com/PawleysIslandPD/status/1575899147504263169–The Associated Press
Over 200,000 South Carolina residents without power after Hurricane Ian makes landfall
Thousands of South Carolina residents are already facing power outages after Hurricane Ian made landfall Friday afternoon, according to poweroutage.us.
The hardest hit areas were Charleston, Berkeley and Georgetown counties.
Ian made landfall in South Carolina as a Category 1 hurricane.
— Natalie Prieb
Hurricane Ian makes landfall in South Carolina
Hurricane Ian has officially hit South Carolina, making landfall in the city of Georgetown just after 2 p.m. ET, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Ian made landfall in the state with sustained winds of 85 mph, the center said in a tweet.
IRS extends tax deadlines for Florida residents affected by Hurricane Ian
The IRS announced Thursday that Florida residents impacted by Hurricane Ian will be granted an extension on filing “most tax returns.”
The agency said in a press release that it has pushed all deadlines for affected taxpayers filing “various individual and business tax returns and mak[ing] tax payments” after Sept. 23 to Feb. 15, 2023. Individual people and households impacted by the hurricane who have a residence or business anywhere in the state of Florida qualify for tax relief.
The extension also applies to relief workers in disaster zones and any visitors who were injured by Ian if they request the relief, according to the IRS.
The postponed deadlines for those affected by Ian also apply to quarterly estimated tax payments, normally due on Jan. 17, and to quarterly payroll and excise tax returns, which were scheduled for Oct. 31 and Jan. 31.
—Natalie Prieb
Biden spoke with South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster: White House
President Biden spoke to South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster (R) over the phone Friday morning to discuss the administration’s response to Hurricane Ian making landfall in South Carolina.
Biden told McMaster that the White House is prepared to offer any level of assistance to the people of South Carolina, according to a statement from the White House.
—Natalie Prieb
Significant storm surge seen in Myrtle Beach, SC
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina was hit by storm surge Friday afternoon due to the impacts of Hurricane Ian in the surrounding area, according to data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
Preliminary data from NOAA shows that nearly 10 feet of storm surge hit the Myrtle Beach area at around 12:40 p.m., Friday, surpassing predictions of 5.6 feet of storm surge.
On Thursday morning, the city of Myrtle Beach issued a hurricane warning, urging residents to prepare for the impacts of the storm.
–Maureen Breslin
Flooding, tornadoes in Virginia as Ian approaches Carolinas
The National Hurricane Center warned Friday that flooding rains and tornados are possible in southern Virginia Friday evening into Saturday morning as Hurricane Ian strikes the Carolinas with “life-threatening storm surge and hurricane conditions.”
It is estimated that Virginia will see 3 to 6 inches of rain, with a maximum of 8 inches, according to the National Hurricane Center. Flash and urban flooding may hit southeast Virginia Friday, while southwest Virginia may see some flooding late Friday evening or early Saturday morning.
Southeast Virginia also might be struck by tornadoes Friday night into Saturday morning, according to the agency.
–Maureen Breslin
President Biden spoke with DeSantis again today
President Biden spoke with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) on Thursday, his third call with the governor in recent days.
In an update on Twitter, Jean-Pierre said Biden spoke on the phone with DeSantis and FEMA Administrator Criswell, who is on the ground in Florida.
“The President received an update on response efforts in the state and made clear the Federal government will continue to be there for the people of Florida,” she added.
Biden spoke with DeSantis on Thursday morning as Hurricane Ian passed through the state.
—Sarakshi Rai
Over 1.9 million Floridians still without power due to Hurricane Ian
Over 1.9 million people are still without power in Florida following Hurricane Ian, according to poweroutage.us.
The hardest hit county as of Friday morning is Hardee County, located in central Florida, which has a nearly 100 percent outage rate, the site reported.
Nearby areas including Highlands, DeSoto, Charlotte and Lee counties are also experiencing serious outages affecting hundreds of thousands of residents.Earlier this week as Ian battered the state after making landfall, there were 2 million people in the state who were reported to have lost power.
In a statement issued before the storm hit, Florida Power & Light (FPL) said that as conditions “rapidly deteriorate” and “crews are unable to deploy” as a result of dangerous conditions, the company will work remotely to try to restore power where possible.
—Natalie Prieb
DeSantis says rescues underway
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said at least 700 rescues, mostly by air, were conducted on Thursday involving the U.S. Coast Guard, the National Guard and urban search-and-rescue teams.
“Some of the damage was almost indescribable,” he said.
Earlier in the day, DeSantis described an ongoing effort to airlift people stranded on Sanibel Island, after the storm destroyed the only bridge to the barrier island outside Fort Myers.
He said the state would also send additional boats to the area for rescue operations.
21 deaths reported from Hurricane Ian in Florida
The director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management said on Friday that there have been 21 deaths reported so far in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian, as search and rescue efforts continue.
The only confirmed death thus far is in Polk County in central Florida, Florida Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie said at a press briefing on Friday morning.
Another 12 unconfirmed deaths have been reported in Charlotte County, just north of Fort Meyers, and eight unconfirmed deaths have been reported in Collier County, south of Fort Meyers, according to Guthrie.
— Julia Shapero
Charleston airport closed as Ian approaches
The main airport in Charleston, South Carolina, has closed ahead of the expected arrival of Hurricane Ian. Officials with the Charleston International Airport say they shuttered the airport, where airlines had already canceled dozens of fights, and winds reached 40 mph.
The airport will remained closed until 6 a.m. Saturday. Under a federal disaster declaration approved by President Joe Biden, federal emergency aid has been made available to supplement South Carolina’s state, tribal and local response efforts pertaining to the storm, which was expected to make landfall in the state later Friday.