Although Hurricane Ian has passed over the southwest coast of Florida, the recovery and rebuilding efforts have only just begun.
Houses were ripped apart from the massive Category 4 storm, many boats capsized, power is knocked out for millions and some are still waiting to be rescued from first responders, who are having difficulty reaching them due to the floods.
The damages left behind are astronomical, and according to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, water levels are expected to keep rising.
“We’ve never seen storm surge of this magnitude,” DeSantis said in a news conference Thursday. “The amount of water that’s been rising, and will likely continue to rise today even as the storm is passing, is basically a 500-year flooding event.”
The storm made landfall Wednesday afternoon and was dubbed as “one of the strongest hurricanes to ever hit the US,” according to The Associated Press.
As of Thursday, at least one death has been reported following the hurricane — a 72-year-old man in Deltona, according to AP.
Authorities and EMS services in the affected cities were bombarded with calls during and after the storm.
In Lee County, the sheriff told ABC’s “Good Morning America” that as of Thursday, they’re still trying to navigate the damages and rescue people in need of saving.
“It crushed us,” Marceno said. “We still cannot access many of the people that are in need.”
The storm has since weakened in strength and has been downgraded to a tropical storm, but is expected to resurface on the South Carolina coast, AP reports.
If anyone in the San Antonio area is looking to help those most affected by the hurricane in Florida, the South Texas Blood and Tissue Center is accepting blood donations.
To schedule an appointment, or to learn more, click here.
These images and videos below, courtesy of Getty Images and social media users, captured some of the damage left behind from Hurricane Ian in Florida:
A truck pulls a man on a kayak on a low-lying road after flooding in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian, in Key West, Fla., Wednesday afternoon, Sept. 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Mary Martin) (Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)The entrance to the Sea World theme park is seen as the park is closed today and Thursday as Hurricane Ian bears down on Florida, Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2022, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux) (Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)FORT MYERS FLORIDA – SEPTEMBER 29: In this aerial view, vehicles make their way through a flooded area after Hurricane Ian passed through on September 29, 2022 in Fort Myers, Florida. The hurricane brought high winds, storm surge and rain to the area causing severe damage. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) (Getty Images)FORT MYERS FLORIDA – SEPTEMBER 29: Boats are pushed up on a causeway after Hurricane Ian passed through the area on September 29, 2022 in Fort Myers, Florida. The hurricane brought high winds, storm surge and rain to the area causing severe damage. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) (Getty Images)BONITA SPRINGS, FL – SEPTEMBER 29: People walk along the beach looking at property damaged by Hurricane Ian on September 29, 2022 in Bonita Springs, Florida. The storm made a U.S. landfall on Cayo Costa, Florida, and brought high winds, storm surges, and rain to the area causing severe damage. (Photo by Sean Rayford/Getty Images) (Getty Images)FORT MYERS FLORIDA – SEPTEMBER 29: In this aerial view, vehicles make their way through a flooded area after Hurricane Ian passed through on September 29, 2022 in Fort Myers, Florida. The hurricane brought high winds, storm surge and rain to the area causing severe damage. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) (Getty Images)Residents of mobile homes clean up debris in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian, in Fort Myers, Florida, on September 29, 2022. – Hurricane Ian left much of coastal southwest Florida in darkness early on Thursday, bringing “catastrophic” flooding that left officials readying a huge emergency response to a storm of rare intensity. The National Hurricane Center said the eye of the “extremely dangerous” hurricane made landfall just after 3:00 pm (1900 GMT) on the barrier island of Cayo Costa, west of the city of Fort Myers. (Photo by Giorgio VIERA / AFP) (Photo by GIORGIO VIERA/AFP via Getty Images) (Getty Images)FORT MYERS FLORIDA – SEPTEMBER 29: Stedi Scuderi looks over her apartment after flood water inundated it when Hurricane Ian passed through the area on September 29, 2022 in Fort Myers, Florida. The hurricane brought high winds, storm surge and rain to the area causing severe damage. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) (Getty Images)SAINT PETERSBURG, FLORIDA – SEPTEMBER 29: A local worker cleans debris in downtown Saint Petersburg after Hurricane Ian passed through the area on September 29, 2022 in Saint Petersburg, Florida. The hurricane brought high winds, storm surge and rain to the area causing severe damage. (Photo by Gerardo Mora/Getty Images) (Getty Images)SAINT PETERSBURG, FLORIDA – SEPTEMBER 28: Debris litters a street in a neighborhood of St. Pete Beach as the winds from Hurricane Ian arrive on September 28, 2022 in St. Petersburg, Florida. Ian is hitting the area as a Category 4 hurricane. (Photo by Gerardo Mora/Getty Images) (Getty Images)FORT MYERS FLORIDA – SEPTEMBER 29: Frankie Romulus (L) and Kendrick Romulus stand outside of their apartment next to a boat that floated into their apartment complex when Hurricane Ian passed through the area on September 29, 2022 in Fort Myers, Florida. Mrs. Brennan said the boat floated in around 7pm. The hurricane brought high winds, storm surge and rain to the area causing severe damage. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) (Getty Images)TOPSHOT – A man takes photos of boats damaged by Hurricane Ian in Fort Myers, Florida, on September 29, 2022. – Hurricane Ian left much of coastal southwest Florida in darkness early on Thursday, bringing “catastrophic” flooding that left officials readying a huge emergency response to a storm of rare intensity. The National Hurricane Center said the eye of the “extremely dangerous” hurricane made landfall just after 3:00 pm (1900 GMT) on the barrier island of Cayo Costa, west of the city of Fort Myers. (Photo by Giorgio VIERA / AFP) (Photo by GIORGIO VIERA/AFP via Getty Images) (Getty Images)TOPSHOT – A man inspects damage to a marina as boats are partially submerged in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian in Fort Myers, Florida, on September 29, 2022. – Hurricane Ian left much of coastal southwest Florida in darkness early on Thursday, bringing “catastrophic” flooding that left officials readying a huge emergency response to a storm of rare intensity. The National Hurricane Center said the eye of the “extremely dangerous” hurricane made landfall just after 3:00 pm (1900 GMT) on the barrier island of Cayo Costa, west of the city of Fort Myers. (Photo by Giorgio VIERA / AFP) (Photo by GIORGIO VIERA/AFP via Getty Images) (Getty Images)TOPSHOT – Boat are partially submerged at a marina in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian in Fort Myers, Florida, on September 29, 2022. – Hurricane Ian left much of coastal southwest Florida in darkness early on Thursday, bringing “catastrophic” flooding that left officials readying a huge emergency response to a storm of rare intensity. The National Hurricane Center said the eye of the “extremely dangerous” hurricane made landfall just after 3:00 pm (1900 GMT) on the barrier island of Cayo Costa, west of the city of Fort Myers. (Photo by Giorgio VIERA / AFP) (Photo by GIORGIO VIERA/AFP via Getty Images) (Getty Images)TOPSHOT – Residents inspect damage to a marina as boats are partially submerged in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian in Fort Myers, Florida, on September 29, 2022. – Hurricane Ian left much of coastal southwest Florida in darkness early on Thursday, bringing “catastrophic” flooding that left officials readying a huge emergency response to a storm of rare intensity. The National Hurricane Center said the eye of the “extremely dangerous” hurricane made landfall just after 3:00 pm (1900 GMT) on the barrier island of Cayo Costa, west of the city of Fort Myers. (Photo by Giorgio VIERA / AFP) (Photo by GIORGIO VIERA/AFP via Getty Images) (Getty Images)TOPSHOT – A man cycles through water past a downed street lamp in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian in Fort Myers, Florida, on September 29, 2022. – Hurricane Ian left much of coastal southwest Florida in darkness early on Thursday, bringing “catastrophic” flooding that left officials readying a huge emergency response to a storm of rare intensity. The National Hurricane Center said the eye of the “extremely dangerous” hurricane made landfall just after 3:00 pm (1900 GMT) on the barrier island of Cayo Costa, west of the city of Fort Myers. (Photo by Giorgio VIERA / AFP) (Photo by GIORGIO VIERA/AFP via Getty Images) (Getty Images)