Thursday, September 29, 2022


What does a storm surge look like? Check out this timelapse from Hurricane Ian



Katlyn Brieskorn
Thu, September 29, 2022 

SANIBEL ISLAND, Fla. (WFLA) — A timelapse showed a storm surge hit Sanibel, Florida, on Wednesday as Hurricane Ian came ashore.

A traffic camera captured the video of high winds and floodwaters completely submerging an intersection on the island. The timelapse shows Periwinkle Way and Casa Ybel Road in Sanibel. Twitter user @BirdingPeepWx said the camera recorded conditions deteriorating over a period of 30 minutes, from noon to 12:30 p.m.


Another Twitter user shared this video of the storm surge impacting Marco Island.

Storm surges are often considered the greatest threat to life and property during hurricanes, according to the National Hurricane Center. Of the roughly 1,500 people who died during Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the NHC says many lost their lives directly or indirectly as a result of storm surge.



The NHC explains that storm surges are “an abnormal rise of water generated by a storm, over and above the predicted astronomical tides.” They can cause extreme flooding, like that seen in Naples where cars were submerged and a child was reportedly almost swept away.

Photos show destruction from Hurricane Ian

Surges form as winds from the storm push water toward the land, causing it to pile up. Because of their complexity, the NHC says even the slightest changes in the storm – whether it be intensity, speed, size, central pressure, or approach to the coast, or the shape and features of the coast – can alter a storm surge.

Hurricane Ian made landfall as a powerful Category 4 hurricane near Cayo Costa, bringing maximum sustained winds of 150 mph. It’s one of the most powerful storms ever recorded in the U.S., swamping city streets with water and smashing trees along Florida’s western coast.

The Associated Press and Storyful contributed to this report.

  



What does Sanibel Island look like after Hurricane Ian? See for yourself

Jeff Kleinman
Thu, September 29, 2022 at 12:56 PM

Sanibel Island was a perfect escape for many people from South Florida. A place to pick shells, see nature, have a good meal, kick back in the sand.

Now it’s a disaster zone.

Hurricane Ian washed over the beloved island Wednesday, cleaving away a section of the only causeway from the mainland, leaving scarred asphalt and ruined property. It’s unclear if anyone died.

READ MORE: Your favorite Sanibel hangouts were ground zero of hurricane. A look at some of them

Here are some early photos of the rescue operation and the devastation along Sanibel:

A U.S. Coast Guard aircrew hoists people from flooded areas near Sanibel, Florida, after Hurricane Ian, Sept. 29, 2022. Crews continue to conduct search and rescue operations in affected areas.

A damaged causeway to Sanibel Island is seen in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian , Thursday, Sept. 29, 2022, near Sanibel Island, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

A section of the damaged Sanibel Causeway seen in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian, Thursday, Sept. 29, 2022, near Sanibel Island, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

A section of the causeway leading to Sanibel, Fla., in Lee County was knocked out by Hurricane Ian Thursday, Sept. 29, 2022. Hurricane Ian has left a path of destruction in southwest Florida, trapping people in flooded homes, damaging the roof of a hospital intensive care unit and knocking out power to 2.5 million people. (Douglas R. Clifford/Tampa Bay Times via AP)More

A section of the Sanibel Causeway was lost due to the effects of Hurricane Ian Thursday, Sept. 29, 2022, in Fort Myers, Fla. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

A home burns on Sanibel Island in the wake of Hurricane Ian, Thursday, Sept. 29, 2022, in Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

A military helicopter sits down on Sanibel Island in the wake of Hurricane Ian, Thursday, Sept. 29, 2022, in Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Damaged homes are seen in the wake of Hurricane Ian, Thursday, Sept. 29, 2022, on Sanibel Island, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)


Hurricanes in the Movies: The Hurricane (1937)

Directed by John Ford and starring Jon Hall, Dorothy Lamour, Thomas Mitchell, Raymond Massey, Mary Astor, and John Carradine.  Jon Hall is Terangi, the favorite son of a South Sea island, with Dorothy Lamour as his betrothed, and later, wife.  Raymond Massey and Mary Astor are the French Governor and his wife, and veteran character actor Thomas Mitchell (Uncle Billy from "It's a Wonderful Life") is Dr. Kersaint.

The real star of the movie is the hurricane, which makes its appearance about two-thirds through the movie, but which utterly takes over the film, as Hollywood outdoes itself in early SF with the depiction of the storm arriving, the wind and rain, and the ultimate destruction of the storm surge.

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