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FORT MEYERS BEACH, Fla. — The town of Fort Meyers Beach in Florida is unrecognizable after Hurricane Ian tore through the area. It's now considered to be one of the 25 worst hurricanes to ever hit the U.S.
Dozens and dozens of homes and businesses were ripped apart and destroyed.
After waiting out the storm, many homeowners have been trying to figure out what they'll do for the months ahead. Homeowners who decided to stay and endure the storm are being moved off of Fort Myers beach.
"If you watched the storm, you didn't really know where it was going to go," homeowner John Davis said. He hoped Ian would have landed elsewhere. He's been holding out for days.
"No water, no electricity. Starts getting rough after a while," Davis said.
Even though his house survived, he said it's now time to stay with some family out of state.
Other homeowners in Fort Myers Beach were not as lucky.
Chris Murray looked over the destruction and said, "One day did all this — 24 hours, not even."
He's helping his father, Terry Murray, gather what belongings he could.
"First-floor house. Concrete block and water was up to the ceiling," he described.
Now it's time to start over.
Here's just some of what we're seeing in Fort Myers beach. So much of the town is decimated in the wake of #hurricaineIan We just followed one of many #fema search and rescue teams as they try and see who's still here along with lives lost. stories here for @KSL5TV all day pic.twitter.com/dsYnMGxVfc
— Mike Anderson (@mikeandersonKSL) October 3, 2022
Linemen continued to work around the clock Tuesday with plans to have power restored to 95% of customers by Friday.
For this island community, it will be longer. Some people are being told up to two months.
"This is a 100-year flood for here. My house was built in 1974, it's never had water in it ever. For a ground-level in Florida, that's incredible," Murray said.
It will be years before this beachside getaway returns to what it once was.
"It's like a bomb went off. I mean it's devastating beyond belief," Murray said.
It's hard to believe so much was taken away, in so little time. Without power, hundreds of homeowners are going to Red Cross shelters which are now being expanded in a local sports arena.
