Live Updates: Hurricane Ian wallops Florida, heads north

The Latest on Hurricane Ian:

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — The U.S. death toll from Hurricane Ian has risen to 27 as of Friday night.

According to Florida’s Medical Examiners Commission, several new deaths were attributable to the storm, including a 62-year-old woman who died after suffering injuries and drowning when a tree fell on a mobile home, a 54-year-old man who was found trapped in a window after drowning, and a female who was found tangled in wires under a residence in Lee County.

Other deaths reported earlier included a 22-year-old woman who was ejected from an ATV rollover Friday because of a road washout in Manatee County and a 71-year-old man who died of head injuries when he fell off a roof while putting up rain shutters on Wednesday.

Another three people died in Cuba earlier in the week as the storm churned northward. The death toll was expected to increase substantially once emergency officials have an opportunity to search many of the hardest-hit areas.

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KEY DEVELOPMENTS:

— Ian lashes South Carolina as Florida’s death toll climbs

— Hurricane Ian heads for Carolinas after pounding Florida

— DeSantis shifts from provocateur to crisis manager after Ian

— In Ian’s wake, worried families crowdsource rescue efforts

— After Ian, the effects in southwest Florida are everywhere

— Find more AP coverage here: https://apnews.com/hub/hurricanes

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OTHER DEVELOPMENTS:

The U.S. death toll from Hurricane Ian has risen to 17 as Florida authorities on Friday afternoon confirmed several drowning deaths and other fatalities.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement said the deaths included a 22-year-old woman who was ejected from an ATV rollover on Friday because of a road washout in Manatee County and a 71-year-old man who died of head injuries when he fell off a roof while putting up rain shutters on Wednesday. Many of the other deaths were drownings, including a 68-year-old woman who was swept into the ocean by a wave.

Another three people died in Cuba as the storm made its way north earlier in the week. The death toll was expected to increase substantially when emergency officials have an opportunity to search many areas hardest hit by the storm.

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MIAMI, Fla. — Major river flooding is expected to continue across parts of central Florida into next week as post-tropical storm Ian continues making its way up the East coast, according to the National Hurricane Center.

In an update late Friday afternoon, the agency advised that considerable other flooding will also occur into the evening in both North and South Carolina, as well as southeast Virginia, and local flooding could be expected in portions of northwest North Carolina and southern Virginia into early Saturday morning.

Although the intensity of the storm has decreased from hurricane strength, agency officials warned of life-threatening storm surge along the coasts of the Carolinas Friday night.

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MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. — A commercial fishing boat anchored in the ocean near Myrtle Beach broke free and washed ashore on Friday, but no one was aboard, according to city police spokesman Master Cpl. Tom Vest.

The U.S. Coast Guard was called out to the boat on Thursday when it had mechanical problems, Vest said. Everyone got off the boat and it was anchored in the ocean near 82nd Avenue North. At some point Friday, however, the boat broke free and police began getting calls about the boat as it traveled about 8 miles (13 kilometers) south to the beach near Williams Street, he said.

Officials believe fluids were leaking from the boat and there was a strong smell of fuel, Vest said. Authorities have warned the public to stay away from the boat, saying it was extremely dangerous.

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CHARLESTON, S.C. — Ian has dropped from a hurricane to a post-tropical cyclone as it moved across South Carolina.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center says Ian, which carved a swath of destruction across Florida earlier this week, had maximum sustained winds of 70 mph (110 kph) Friday afternoon.

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.

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COLUMBIA, S.C. — Hurricane Ian has destroyed parts of at least four piers along South Carolina’s northern coast.

The brunt of the surge and waves from the Category 1 storm hit around Myrtle Beach on Friday.

Police said the Pawley’s Island Pier was washed away first. Then local TV footage showed sections missing of the Cherry Grove Pier near North Myrtle Beach and the Apache and Second Avenue piers in Myrtle Beach.

An 85 mph (137 kph) wind gust was measured at Fort Sumter, the tiny island where the Civil War began about 4 miles (6.4 km) from downtown Charleston, the National Weather Service reported.

More than 200,000 customers were without power Friday afternoon in South Carolina as Ian moved onshore.

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The story above has been corrected to clarify that parts of four piers in South Carolina were washed away — not entire piers.

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ORLANDO, Fla. — University of Central Florida students living at an apartment complex near the Orlando campus, made homeless by the flooding, retrieved possessions Friday from their water logged units. Andee Holbert, her sister and their dog left their apartment Thursday before the water reached their heads. They returned Friday to retrieve wet clothes in garbage bags and whatever other possessions they could salvage, loading them onto their father’s pickup truck.

“We still had power, which is terrifying, and the lights were still on,” said Holbert, a nursing student. “And there’s knee deep water in there.”

Deandra Smith, also a nursing student, stayed in her third floor apartment with her dog after being asleep while others evacuated. On Friday, other students helped get her to dry land by pushing her through the flooded parking lot on a pontoon. She wasn’t sure if she should go back to her parents’ home in South Florida or find a shelter so she can still attend classes. “I’m still trying to figure it out,” she said.

RALEIGH, N.C. — 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.

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COLUMBIA, S.C. — 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 (80 kilometers) down the coast in Georgetown.

The area saw the brunt of the surge as Ian hit the United States again with flooded neighborhoods and widespread power outages.

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MIAMI — Hurricane Ian has 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 (140 kph).

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.

The Latest on Hurricane Ian:

SANIBEL, Fla. — The U.S. death toll from Hurricane Ian’s passage has risen to four overall after an official said late Thursday that two people were confirmed dead on a hard-hit barrier island on Florida’s western coast.

Dana Souza, city manager of Sanibel, said the deaths were confirmed by fire officials but offered no other specifics. A local medical examiner’s office said it could not comment and any details on deaths would have to come from the sheriff’s office.

In addition to the two Sanibel residents, a 38-year old man from Lake County died Wednesday in a motor vehicle accident after his vehicle hydroplaned, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. Medical examiners determined that his death was storm-related.

A 72-year old man from Deltona also was confirmed dead on Thursday. Officials with the Volusia County sheriff’s office said the man went outside to drain his pool and fell into a canal. He was later found dead.

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KEY DEVELOPMENTS:

— Ian regains hurricane strength as it heads to South Carolina

— Many trapped in Florida as Ian heads toward South Carolina

— Florida hospitals evacuate hundreds of patients

— Search on for migrants after boat sinks off Florida Keys

— Cuba begins to turn on lights

— Find more AP coverage here: https://apnews.com/hub/hurricanes

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OTHER DEVELOPMENTS:

NORTH PORT, Fla. — Rescuers from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, other states and counties were racing against the clock as the sun was about to set Thursday in North Port, to help families stranded in their own homes surrounded by streets that had turned into canals.

The city was one of many in Florida where rescues were underway as Hurricane Ian continued churning northward toward Georgia and the Carolinas.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said at a press conference Thursday evening there had been 700 confirmed rescues across the state in the wake of the storm. “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.

“Sanibel is destruction,” he said, adding “it got hit with really biblical storm surge, and it washed away roads it washed away structures that were not new and able to withstand that.“

DeSantis said that as of 6 p.m. Thursday, more than 2.6 million people remained without power, including southwest Florida where Ian made landfall.

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FLAGLER BEACH, Fla. — The Flagler Beach pier on the east coast of Florida has sustained significant damage as Hurricane Ian whipped up waves that broke off a large portion of the wooden structure. Locals captured video and photos of the destruction Thursday afternoon as waters rose and crashed onto the pier, leaving debris on the shoreline.

Flagler Sheriff Rick Staly told News4JAX Thursday that he didn’t believe the pier — which was damaged by Tropical Storm Isaias in 2020, as well as Hurricane Matthew in 2016 — would survive the storm’s impact.

Authorities advised residents to avoid the pier over safety concerns.

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ENGLEWOOD, Fla. — Christine Bomlitz, of Las Vegas, had been anxious to reach her mother, Shirley Affolter, an 84-year-old resident of a retirement community just north of where Hurricane Ian made landfall.

She had no way to contact her mother, who had lost her cellphone before the storm. Then her landline went down. Affolter was supposed to have left with other residents as part of an evacuation plan but was never picked up. So she hunkered down. It was too late for anyone to get her.

Bomlitz grew distraught as the hours passed and as Ian’s ferocity grew. Then morning came, but still no word. Frantic, she posted a plea for help on social media.

By Thursday afternoon, a Good Samaritan had waded into the chest-high flood waters of her mother’s neighborhood to do a welfare check.

“I’m thankful for this stranger,” she said, “a total stranger. People are amazing.”

Bomlitz said she and others were trying to arrange for a boat rescue.

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COLUMBIA, S.C. — Officials are warning people in South Carolina that Hurricane Ian will be a problem for much of the state on Friday.

The storm is forecast to make landfall midday Friday as a Category 1 hurricane. But the storm is so broad that gusty winds, heavy rain and storm surge will arrive hours before.

Along the coast, 4 to 7 feet of storm surge is expected, rivaling problems created by hurricanes over the past decade. If Ian comes ashore as a hurricane, it would be the first hurricane to strike the state since Matthew in 2016.

National Guard troops are being positioned to help with the aftermath, including any water rescues and highway crews will be ready to clear roads.

Thursday afternoon, a steady stream of vehicles were heading out of Charleston on Interstate 26 with just a few heading into the city.

Gov. Henry McMaster issued no evacuations, but he said that doesn’t mean the storm isn’t dangerous.

“We know we can handle this if we use our heads and follow the rules,” McMaster said.

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FORT MYERS, Fla. — Lee Health announced Thursday that it was evacuating all of its facilities in Lee County, where Hurricane Ian first made landfall in Florida.

President and CEO Dr. Larry Antonucci said in a video posted online that the health care system’s structures and facilities were in good shape, but infrastructure was challenged in the way of water and power. Generators were being used at some facilities, but three of the system’s four hospitals were without water, Antonucci said.

“We cannot run a health system and a hospital without running water. It’s critical to what we do,” Antonucci said. “Not only from the perspective of patient care but also for fire protection.”

Lee Health is working with the Agency for Health Care Administration in Florida, as well as state and local emergency operations management agencies, to arrange for the evacuation of patients to other hospitals outside of Lee County, officials said.

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RALEIGH, N.C. — North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper urged residents to prepare for lots of rain, high winds and potential power outages when the remnants of Hurricane Ian cross the state soon after the storm likely reaches landfall again in South Carolina.

Visiting the state’s emergency operations center, the governor said at a Thursday afternoon news conference that up to 7 inches (17.8 centimeters) of rain could fall in some areas, with the potential for mountain landslides and tornadoes statewide.

“For North Carolinians, I want to be clear: This storm can still be dangerous and even deadly,” Cooper said.

State Emergency Management Director Will Ray said widespread power losses and evacuations weren’t anticipated at this time. Still, he urged people to keep an eye for changes to the storm’s forecast track, which could bring more troubles Friday to central and coastal counties than currently projected.

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Other states are sending help to Florida after Hurricane Ian. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said Thursday that he’s calling up 135 National Guard members to send to Florida. Forty military and support vehicles will also be sent, he said.

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards has approved sending 245 National Guard members to Florida. The state is also fulfilling requests for a family shelter task force and a hazmat team. “Louisiana knows all too well the chaos and destruction a hurricane as strong as Ian can bring, and we will do everything we can to help our neighbors in Florida and other states impacted by this storm,” Edwards said in a news release.

Utility trucks from Texas made their way early Thursday along Interstate 75 toward the southwest Florida areas ravaged hardest by the storm.