TUESDAY October 4, 2022: 'AFTER IAN' by Tampa Bay Times award winning staff photographers and writers: Nearly a week after Hurricane Ian obliterated communities in Florida, the death toll continues to rise as rescue crews go door-to-door. Hours after Hurricane Ian made landfall, the full extent of damage remained unrealized, unimaginable. The beach towns were the first to go as water and winds up to 150 mph decimated paradise towns from Fort Myers Beach to Punta Gorda. Houses were torn from foundations by water that acted as a conveyor belt. Personal belongings and building materials fused with wet earth. But the wrecked beach towns marked only the beginning. Welcome to 'AFTER IAN'
© zReportage.com Story of the Week #857: TUESDAY October 4, 2022: 'AFTER IAN' by Tampa Bay Times award winning staff photographers and writers: Nearly a week after Hurricane Ian obliterated communities in Florida, the death toll continues to rise as rescue crews go door-to-door. Hours after Hurricane Ian made landfall, the full extent of damage remained unrealized, unimaginable. The beach towns were the first to go as water and winds up to 150 mph decimated paradise towns from Fort Myers Beach to Punta Gorda. Houses were torn from foundations by water that acted as a conveyor belt. Personal belongings and building materials fused with wet earth. But the wrecked beach towns marked only the beginning. Welcome to 'AFTER IAN'
A section of the causeway leading to Sanibel Island in Lee County was knocked out by Hurricane Ian. The Islands famous lighthouse survived Hurricane Ian, but the storm devastated much of the rest of Sanibel. It tore homes and apartment complexes apart, killing some residents.
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BRIANNA RENAS, 17, inspects a fallen palm tree outside her home at Santa Barbara Blvd and SE 39th St Terrace in Cape Coral after riding out Hurricane Ian with her family.
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A pickup truck navigates a flooded section of First Street outside of the United States Courthouse in downtown Fort Myers before sunrise. The storm surge from Hurricane Ian continued to inundate Lee County long after the eye wall of the storm passed into central Florida.
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An SUV rests under a fishing boat displaced by storm surge on San Carlos Blvd just east of Fort Myers Beach, which was mostly destroyed after Hurricane Ian made landfall overnight.
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JAKE MOSES, 19, left, and HEATHER JONES, 18, of Fort Myers, explore a section of destroyed businesses at Fort Myers Beach, which was mostly destroyed after Hurricane Ian made landfall overnight.
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Residents get their first look at damage caused by Hurricane Ian in Bonita Beach. Hurricane Ian left Florida with devastating damage in its wake.
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JAY KIMBLE, 48, left, and CHERYL SUMMERS, 48, prepare to leave Fort Myers Beach, which was mostly destroyed after Hurricane Ian made landfall overnight. The couple, who are engaged, rode the storm out on the beach.
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Water remains around the homes at Palmetto Palms Mobile Home Park off Summerlin Road, which was mostly destroyed after Hurricane Ian made landfall overnight.
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VINCE WRIGHT, 36, walks through the remains of homes on Fort Myers Beach, which was mostly destroyed after Hurricane Ian made landfall overnight.
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Boats lay wrecked and piled up on the East side of the bridge into Fort Myers Beach, which was mostly destroyed after Hurricane Ian made landfall overnight.
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Carrying whatever belongings they can, the Stapleton family walk down Hickory Boulevard after storm surge from Hurricane Ian destroyed their home in Bonita Beach.
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JOE ORLANDINI, center, background, and SHANNON ORLANDINI, right, are evacuate from Fort Myers Beach with their children. The famous Florida beach town was mostly destroyed after Hurricane Ian made landfall overnight.
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The remains of The Cottage Shuckers Beach Bar and the Beacon Motel lay in piles on the sand at Fort Myers Beach, which was mostly destroyed after Hurricane Ian made landfall overnight.
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Vehicles thrown into a canal after Hurricane Ian swept across the state. Ian's destruction included thousands of vehicles across southwest Florida.
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'Sailing' in his Hummer H1, LENNY LEMPENAU crosses flood waters that completely covered County Road 661 in Arcadia in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian.
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Fleet supplies manager SCOTT WILSON, left, and shrimper STEVEN MAXEY walk through the wreckage of shrimping trawlers at Erickson and Jensen Seafood Packers at Fort Myers Beach. The company's fleet of 12 boats, including the 900-ton Double E in the background, were heavily damaged as Hurricane Ian made landfall overnight.
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Shrimper DAVID HUTCHINS, 59, aka 'Sandbar Dave,' hangs out in the galley of the shrimping trawler Lexi-Joe with his hound mix WISHBONE at Erickson and Jensen Seafood Packers in Fort Myers Beach.
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Broken concrete and smashed windows just some of the damage to a condominium building in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian.
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CAROL MIGAL, 81, of Bonita Beach, sits on a wall next to a building damaged by Hurricane Ian. Migal and her daughter-in-law came to Naples to see the damage from the historic storm in Naples.
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CHRISTOPHER SMITH, 72, who was recently diagnosed with cancer, rests inside his Punta Gorda home after sheltering from Hurricane Ian with his wife RENEE. Smith, Aerosmith's ex-photographer said he was ready to die during Hurricane Ian. Now he's happy to be alive. Smith, who stared down Charley, is fighting crippling cancer and didn't want to go to a shelter.
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Flooding from the Peace River turns a community into a 'lake' and washes out the road along County Road 661 outside of Arcadia in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian.
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MICHAEL ZEMAN, of Valrico, uses a kayak to get to his truck and trailer in flooded road near the 4400 block of River Dr., in Valrico in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian.
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Flooding from the Peace River washes out the road along County Road 661 outside of Arcadia after Hurricane Ian swept over the area.
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MARK BARCLAY, the 70-year-old owner of the Barclay Pharmacy, stands behind the prescription counter in Venice. Hurricane Ian blew the roof off the pharmacy and the businesses surrounding it.
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JEROME EVANS, 64, of Punta Gorda, talks about the history of the Blanchard House. The historic home and African American museum in Punta Gorda will need a new roof and floor because of Hurricane Ian's damage.
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Volunteer KAIT DONNELLY wheels a cart full of donated supplies at Big Storm Brewing where items are being collected to send to those affected by Hurricane Ian in southwest Florida,
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Makeshift sign reads 'No Cars' as people walk the roadway that connected Matlacha and Pine Island which became a foot bridge after it crumbled during Hurricane Ian. Vehicles could not leave or enter Pine Island because of the damage.
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