🎙️ Voice is AI-generated. Inconsistencies may occur.
Several photos and videos shared online showed that some parts of Florida are still underwater while other areas continue to face a threat of flooding over a week after Hurricane Ian first struck the state.
One video shared online on Sunday by communication and media training coach Stephanie Coueignoux showed a playground partially underwater. Coueignoux tweeted that much of the Fort Mellon playground and Sanford's Riverwalk were covered by water.
Another video posted on Tuesday by WeatherNation revealed aerial footage from Orlando that showed cars, roads and buildings "completely" underwater following the hurricane.
Meanwhile, chief meteorologist Paul Dellegatto at local news station FOX13, shared a photo of a living room couch being pulled out from a nearby canal.
"Friends on Little Gasparilla Island returned to find their home gone. Roof was on the beach. Their living room couch was plucked out of a nearby canal. #Ian," Dellegatto tweeted.
Little Gasparilla Island, which is only accessible by boat, has suffered severe damages from the hurricane that left behind hundreds of downed trees, brown vegetation, and destroyed power lines, NPR reported Saturday. Powerline workers are still trying to restore electricity to the island where around all of the 500 homes incurred damage.
Meanwhile, Volusia County continues to deal with a threat of flooding, while inland areas still have a huge amount of standing water that couldn't be channeled anywhere, according to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis who toured the county on Friday, CNN reported on Saturday.
Volusia County Emergency Manager Jim Judge said that authorities are monitoring areas along St. Johns River and added that thousands of sandbags were being delivered "almost every day out to those areas to help those folks."
The National Weather Service (NWS) reported that a gauge on the river near the community of Astor was at 4.37 feet on Friday, which is around 2 feet over flood stage.
"Lingering high water from Hurricane Ian in late September will keep levels along the Saint Johns river high as rainfall moves downstream through the basin," the NWS said in a flood warning on Sunday. "The forecast point at Astor remains near Record Flood stage and is forecast to rise back up to 4.6 ft by Tuesday and remain in Major flood stage for the foreseeable future. Interests along the river will continue to see major flood impacts through this week."
Other severe damages from the category 4 hurricane were caused to the Pine Island Road bridge, which only reopened to the public on Wednesday night.
Lee County, which includes Pine Island and surrounding areas of Fort Myers, was also severely damaged and accounted for most of the hurricane-related fatalities reported in Florida, according to officials.
Newsweek reached out to the Florida Division of Emergency Management for comment.
About the writer
Fatma Khaled is a Newsweek weekend reporter based in New York City. Her focus is reporting on U.S. politics, world ... Read more