As Hurricane Ian bears down on the Sunshine State, Florida governor Ron DeSantis issued a final warning to residents that the time to evacuate has passed and that the best decision anyone could make is to simply “hunker down.”
Ian is expected to make landfall this afternoon at Category 4 levels. Wind could exceed 250 miles per hour and storm surges have been predicted to be as high as eighteen feet along coastal areas. The highest risk areas are currently predicted to be in Collier and Sarasota counties, areas that include popular and dense communities like Fort Myers and just south of the Tampa-Saint Petersburg city limits.
DeSantis said for people “in any of those counties, it’s no longer possible to safely evacuate. It’s time to hunker down and prepare for this storm. If you are on the roads, get to a safe place as soon as possible,”
Fox News added of DeSantis’ final safety warning:
DeSantis noted that local bridges, including Tampa’s Sunshine Skyway Bridge, are closed and that there are more than 200 shelters open in just the southwestern region of the state.
The governor additionally warned the public not to leave their houses in the “eye of the storm” – a comparatively calm bubble in the center of a hurricane. DeSantis warned that these moments of peace can quickly and lethally escalate back to severe hurricane winds.
Residents who are hunkering down should wait to go outside until the storm has passed completely and be cautious afterward.
“This is going to be a nasty, nasty day, two days…So, this is going to be a rough stretch,” DeSantis warned.
Fox went on to include impressive details of the governor’s mobilization efforts. In addition to the 200 shelters prepared for residents, the DeSantis said that twenty-six states had offered support. He also had powerline crews lined up to immediately repair the anticipate damage wrought by the fierce storm and winds.
DeSantis said Florida Department of Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie had requested additional airlift hoists and highwater vehicles from the Department of Defense in coordination with FEMA and that the Department of Transportation also has 1,200 personnel on standby to perform cut and toss operations.
Comments to the Fox News article were almost exclusively positive and blunt about their appraisal of the governor’s amazing response to the expected crisis. Whereas trolls normally litter a comment section, nearly unanimous voices praised DeSantis for his clear and frequent communication, as well as his preparedness.
I have never seen a Governor hold more press conferences and give out more info before a hurricane than DeSantis. Kudos to him and his team. May everyone heed the warnings and be safe.
The way Gov Ron DeSantis is handling himself during this storm and directing everyone what to do demonstrates this man’s leadership qualities and how he will lead the nation to become the greatest nation of all time. Vote for President Ron DeSantis
This hurricane is a terrible catastrophe, but also a chance for De Santis to show us his ability as a leader for all Floridians. Watch how well he does and compare it to what Biden has (or hasn’t) done for the last twenty months when he faced inflation, crime, shortages, the southern border, Title IX, CRT, and pronouns et al. May the real winner emerge so that even liberals can see it. Keep going, Governor.
Never seen a Gov so thorough in the safety of his State. The man knows what he is doing! Our State has the right guy in charge, period.
This story syndicated with permission from The Blue State Conservative