Biden issues major disaster declaration amid Ian’s destruction

President Joe Biden on Thursday declared a major disaster in Florida as Tropical Storm Ian swept across the state, leaving a path of destruction in its wake.

The declaration brings with it federal aid to supplement state, local and tribal recovery efforts in areas affected by the storm, as well as individual assistance to residents of nine counties. This assistance could include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low cost loans to cover uninsured property loss and other programs to assist with disaster-recovery.

Ian, which at one point neared category 5 hurricane strength as it approached Florida, weakened to a tropical storm by early Thursday. It has brought catastrophic flooding across the state as well as powerful winds that have battered homes and businesses. Even ahead of its landfall, Ian was forecast to be one of the worst hurricanes in Florida history.

The National Hurricane Center said in its 8 a.m. advisory on Thursday that the storm was moving northeast at 8 miles per hour with maximum sustained winds lowered to 65 mph — compared to Wednesday’s 150 mph winds. The center of the storm is expected to soon move off the east-central coast of Florida and approach the coast of South Carolina on Friday, where it could reintensify before weakening as it moves inland across the Carolinas, according to the National Hurricane Center.

The sheriff of Lee County in Southwest Florida, which was heavily affected by the storm, estimated on early Thursday that the fatalities from Ian “are in the hundreds.”

“I don't have confirmed numbers. I definitely know the fatalities are in the hundreds,” Carmine Marceno said on ABC's “Good Morning America.” “There are thousands of people that are waiting to be rescued and, again, can not give a true assessment until we're actually on scene, assessing each scene, and we can't access people, that's the problem.”

The storm knocked out power for more than 2 million people in Florida by early Thursday, a figure that is sure to rise as the storm continues its way across the state. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis warned during a late Wednesday night appearance on Fox News that the hurricane will bring “one of the biggest flood events we've ever had. What remains to be seen is how much damage the wind did. Obviously it's very significant."

The White House said in its disaster declaration that damage assessments are continuing in other areas of the state, ”and additional areas may be designated for assistance after the assessments are fully completed.”

Biden’s approval comes a day after DeSantis officially requested the disaster declaration for the entire state. The entire Florida congressional delegation also wrote to Biden in support of DeSantis’ request.

“This historic hurricane will continue to impact the state for some time, and the full extent of damage will not be known for days. However, approving this declaration request will allowFloridians to be better prepared for the recovery phase,” the lawmakers said in a letter, led by Florida Sens. Marco Rubio (R) and Rick Scott (R).

The governor held multiple briefings during the week on the state’s response to the hurricane in Tallahassee and throughout the state. Florida prepared teams for search and rescue missions and activated 5,000 National Guard troops to assist in the recovery efforts. At least 40,000 workers are on standby to help restore power.

“This is going to be one of those historic storms, and it’s going to really shape the communities in southwest Florida and have a profound impact on our state,” DeSantis said Wednesday. “So we just ask people for their thoughts and their prayers.”

At least 2.5 million people were under evacuation orders in some areas, and while many fled to higher ground, some stayed in their homes. Officials on Wednesday advised people who remained in their homes in evacuation areas to shelter in place, including Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Deanne Criswell, who said members of the Department of Defense, Department of the Interior and the U.S. Coast Guard in Miami have “robust search and rescue capability.”

Karen Baughman, 81, of Fort Myers, Fla., couldn’t evacuate her home before the hurricane struck and was hunkered down in her home on Wednesday. She said she felt safe and didn’t have any flooding in her neighborhood.

“I’ve been through three hurricanes here and only once did I have to go to a shelter,” she said in an interview. “My home felt safe. It’s always sounded worse — the predictions — than it’s been. And I didn’t really know where I would go.”

 Zack Colman contributed to this story.