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Cross in hand, this man walks through Oyster Bay Mobile Park on Florida's San Carlos Island
Photo:
CRISTOBAL HERRERA-ULASHKEVICH v EPA
US President Joe Biden had already voiced dire fears.
And indeed, the death toll from Storm Ian, which wreaked havoc on Cuba, Florida and other US states, has increased significantly.
In Florida alone from initially 25 to now 44, as reported by the AFP news agency, citing information from the authorities.
The Reuters agency writes of 47 deaths in Florida and four reported victims in South Carolina.
According to reports, three people had previously died in Cuba.
Television networks such as NBC and CBS reported more than 70 deaths related to the storm.
Florida in particular continues to struggle with the aftermath of the hurricane.
The flooding isn't over yet, and power hasn't been restored everywhere, Governor Ron DeSantis said.
Chaos instead of palm idyll
Chaos continues to reign on the streets of the popular coastal cities of Naples, Cape Coral and Fort Myers.
Because the power is still off, the traffic lights don't work.
Pick-ups loaded with rubble jostle through the heavy traffic.
Debris, fallen trees, power poles are piling up at the roadside.
The storm has now lost its strength.
But before it weakened, "Ian" hit the South Carolina coast as a category one out of five hurricane, bringing with it storm surges.
The TV pictures showed completely flooded streets and a partially destroyed pier.
The power went out for more than 500,000 homes in South and North Carolina and Virginia, partly because falling trees severed the lines.
As of Saturday evening, more than 900,000 households in Florida were still without power, with a peak of more than two million in the past few days, a spokesman for the Florida Light & Power utility told CNN.
In North Carolina and Virginia there were still 45,000 in the evening.
"Ian" made landfall in Florida on Wednesday as a level four hurricane with wind speeds of up to 150 miles per hour.
It left destruction and flooding in its wake across the southern state.
On Saturday, the Coast Guard rescued more than 300 people, some from roofs and trees, as well as a good 80 pets, using helicopters, among other things.
In the Lee County area alone, where "Ian" made landfall, 35 deaths have been confirmed related to the hurricane, Sheriff Carmine Marceno said Saturday.
140 kilometers per hour
After Florida, "Ian" first went out to sea, regained some strength there and reached the coast of South Carolina on Friday with wind speeds of around 140 kilometers per hour.
A few hours later, the winds weakened to around 95 kilometers per hour and according to the usual classification, the hurricane was no longer considered a hurricane.
In the town of Georgetown, South Carolina, where "Ian" made landfall, the central shopping street was flooded.
The small town of Pawleys Island was hit by a two meter high tidal wave.
Anger at Cuba
On Tuesday, "Ian" was a category three out of five hurricane that made landfall in Cuba and caused severe damage there.
At least three people died, according to government sources.
Large parts of the Caribbean state were still without electricity on Friday.
Anger at the government is great, and residents took to the streets again on Saturday.
In the capital Havana, some people erected a roadblock with overturned garbage containers in the evening.
A few dozen participants demonstrated on the busy Línea street, banging on pots because they hadn't had electricity or running water for five days.
Military representatives of the socialist one-party state tried to appease the locals with assurances that work was being done to repair the lines.
But they were shouted down with angry complaints about the state's slow work.
Plainclothes police arrested at least one person.
sak/dpa/AP/AFP
