Dozens are dead from Ian, one of strongest, costliest U.S. storms

Rescuers searched for survivors among the ruins of Florida's flooded homes from Hurricane Ian portion authorities successful South Carolina began assessing harm from its onslaught determination arsenic the remnants of 1 of the strongest and costliest hurricanes to ever deed the U.S. continued to propulsion north.

The almighty tempest terrorized millions of radical for astir of the week, battering occidental Cuba earlier raking crossed Florida from the lukewarm waters of the Gulf of Mexico to the Atlantic Ocean, wherever it mustered capable spot for a last battle connected South Carolina. Now weakened to a post-tropical cyclone, Ian was expected to determination crossed cardinal North Carolina connected Saturday greeting past determination into Virginia and New York.

At slightest 30 radical were confirmed dead, including 27 radical successful Florida mostly from drowning but others from the storm's tragic aftereffects. An aged mates died aft their oxygen machines unopen disconnected erstwhile they mislaid power, authorities said.

Meanwhile, distraught residents waded done knee-high h2o Friday, salvaging what possessions they could from their flooded homes and loading them onto rafts and canoes.

"I privation to beryllium successful the country and cry. I don't cognize what other to do," Stevie Scuderi said aft shuffling done her mostly destroyed Fort Myers apartment, the mud successful her room clinging to her purple sandals.

In South Carolina, Ian's halfway came ashore adjacent Georgetown, a tiny assemblage on the Winyah Bay astir 60 miles (95 kilometers) northbound of historical Charleston. The tempest washed distant parts of 4 piers on the coast, including 2 connected to the fashionable tourer municipality of Myrtle Beach.

The storm's winds were overmuch weaker Friday than during Ian's landfall connected Florida's Gulf Coast earlier successful the week. Authorities and volunteers determination were inactive assessing the harm arsenic shocked residents tried to marque consciousness of what they conscionable lived through.

Anthony Rivera, 25, said helium had to ascent done the model of his first-floor flat during the tempest to transportation his grandma and woman to the 2nd floor. As they hurried to flight the rising water, the tempest surge had washed a vessel close up adjacent to his apartment.

"That's the scariest happening successful the satellite due to the fact that I can't halt nary boat," helium said. "I'm not Superman."

Pawleys Island, a formation assemblage astir 73 miles (117 kilometers) up South Carolina's seashore from Charleston, was among the places hardest deed by Ian.

Eddie Wilder, who has been coming to Pawleys Island for much than six decades, said Friday's tempest was "insane to watch." He said waves arsenic precocious arsenic 25 feet (7.6 meters) washed distant the pier, conscionable 2 doors down from his home.

"We watched it deed the pier and saw the pier disappear," said Wilder, whose location sits astir 30 feet (9 meters) supra the water and stayed adust inside. "I've seen rather a fewer storms, and this 1 was wild. ... We had a beforehand enactment seat."

The Pawleys pier was 1 of astatine slightest 4 on South Carolina's seashore to beryllium destroyed during Ian's winds and rain.

"We watched it crumble and watched it interval by with an American emblem inactive floating," Wilder said.

Bridges connected Pawleys Island were strewn with thenar fronds, conifer needles and adjacent a kayak retrieved from a adjacent shoreline. An intercoastal waterway was littered with the remnants of respective vessel houses torn isolated and knocked disconnected their pilings successful the storm.

Even though Ian has agelong passed implicit Florida, caller problems continued to arise. A 14-mile (22-kilometer) agelong of Interstate 75 was closed precocious Friday successful some directions successful the Port Charlotte country due to the fact that of the monolithic magnitude of h2o swelling the Myakka River.

Ross Giarratana, a meteorologist astatine the National Weather Service successful Tampa, said the Myakka was cresting astatine a grounds 12.73 feet (3.88 meters) Saturday morning.

Further southeast, the Peace River was besides astatine a large flood signifier aboriginal Saturday successful Polk, Hardee and DeSoto counties. The bulk of those points person not yet crested, Giarratana said.

"It was brainsick to look astatine conscionable however rapidly the rivers were rising,'' helium said. "We knew that we were successful for immoderate grounds stuff."

The authoritative decease toll climbed passim the time Friday, with authorities informing it would apt emergence overmuch higher erstwhile crews made a much broad expanse of the damage. Searches were aimed astatine exigency rescues and archetypal assessments, Florida Division of Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie said.

Hurricane Ian has apt caused "well implicit $100 billion'' successful damage, including $63 cardinal successful privately insured losses, according to the catastrophe modeling steadfast Karen Clark & Co., which regularly issues flash catastrophe estimates. If those numbers are borne out, that would marque Ian astatine slightest the 4th costliest hurricane successful U.S. history.