Surviving the storm, Northeast AR native shares her experience

FORT MYERS, Fla. (KAIT) - A woman who grew up in the Jonesboro area shares the moments before she took cover from Hurricane Ian.

Paradise Gibson moved from Jonesboro to Florida during her Sophomore year of high school. She is now a student at Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers.

As the powerful Category 4 storm barreled towards the Florida Peninsula, Paradise’s fears began to grow.

“I was nervous before it hit, but I knew all I need to do was prepare,” said Gibson.

Ian first made landfall near Fort Myers with sustained winds of 150 mph, some wind gusts approaching 130 mph. The storm was very close to becoming a category 5, which is the highest rating the National Hurricane Center can give to a storm.

Gibson has made Fort Myers her home but after the major hurricane, it looks totally different.

“Parts of Fort Myers and Naples are absolutely destroyed and some parts are still underneath the water,” said Paradise.

As Ian pushed inland, it brought a 10-foot storm surge.

Florida Gulf Coast University has a new arena on campus that is said to be very sturdy, giving over 200 students a place to hunker down after abandoning everything and hoping for the best.

“I could hear and see it, it was like a loud whistle, and I could hear like the ceiling, there was something fell on the roof and it was like moving around on the roof,” said Gibson. She stated that some of those sounds will stay with her for a very long time.

Paradise is no rookie when it comes to riding out major hurricanes, She evacuated shortly before Hurricane Irma made landfall as a Category 5 back in 2017.

Gibson spoke with some friends from Estero, Florida, and they barely escaped Ian’s wraith.

“I would not say a lot of them but at least three or four I know have lost their houses and a few cars,” said Gibson.

Paradise said that she is very blessed to have survived the storm, and not lost all of her possessions. Others across the Sunshine were not so lucky, as the death toll rises each day. Gibson said that Pine Island is currently cut off from the mainland, eliminating access to food or fresh water. She said they were hit extremely hard as the hurricane made landfall.

“I do not think it has hit me yet, the fact that I could have lost my cars, my house, and all my belongings could be gone right now,” said Gibson.

Gas shortages are in full swing, Gibson said it took her over thirty minutes to fill up due to the long lines. Generators can be heard all across the Fort Myers area as power crews work tirelessly to restore power to the area. Paradise just got her power back on yesterday.

“Gas stations have super long lines right now because I know a lot of people are using generators, and we were until yesterday,” said Gibson.

The Red Cross and FEMA are now in the area helping victims recover.

KAIT’s parent company Gray Television is teaming up with The Salvation Army to support Hurricane Ian relief efforts.

You can donate to support the Sunshine State by visiting Give.HelpSalvationArmy.org, calling 1-800-SAL-ARMY (1-800-725-2769), or by texting STORM to 51555.

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