LIVE FROM DOWNTOWN DETROIT. LOCAL 4 NEWS AT FIVE STARTS NOW. WE BEGIN WITH UTTER DEVASTATION
TONIGHT ALONG FLORIDA’S GULF
COAST HOMES RIPPED TO SHREDS
ROADS WIPED OUT AND FEARS OVER
THE LOSS OF LIFE AS THE RECOVERY
IS JUST GETTING UNDERWAY. THIS
COULD BE THE DEADLIEST HURRICANE
IN FLORIDA’S HISTORY. THE
NUMBERS OF STILL ARE STILL
UNCLEAR, BUT WE’RE HEARING EARLY
REPORTS OF WHAT MAY BE
SUBSTANTIAL LOSS OF LIFE. MY
CHIMNEY CAME DOWN. I WAS AFRAID
IT WAS GOING TO COME THROUGH THE
ROOF AND CRUSH ME. IT IS GOING
TO TAKE MONTHS, IF NOT YEARS FOR
PARTS OF FLORIDA TO RECOVER FROM
HURRICANE IAN. LET’S TAKE YOU
THROUGH SOME OF THE DAMAGE. TAKE
A LOOK. THIS IS SANTA BELL,
WHICH SAW EXTENSIVE DAMAGE, AND
HERE’S WHERE IT GETS WORSE. THE
CAUSEWAY LINKING THE ISLAND TO
THE MAINLAND HAS BEEN WIPED OUT
, LEAVING PEOPLE THEY’RE CUT OFF
FROM HELP AND SUPPLIES. TAKE A
LOOK AT THIS TIME LAPSE OF THE
STORM SURGE POURING INTO FOURTH
MYERS BEACH, THE WATER STARTED
COMING IN AND WENT FROM BAD TO
WORSE TO DEVASTATING AND JUST A
MATTER OF A FEW HOURS NOW, TAKE
A LOOK AT THE RADAR. JUSTINIAN
HAS JUST BEEN UPGRADED AGAIN TO
OR HURRICANE BUT IT IS EXPECTED
TO GAIN STEAM AGAIN AND HEAD
NORTH AND AS IAN REGROUPS PEOPLE
UP AND DOWN THE GULF COAST ARE
JUST STARTING TO COME TO GRIPS
WITH WHAT HAPPENED. THAT’S
ESPECIALLY TRUE IN FORT MYERS,
WHERE WE KNOW A LOT OF PEOPLE
HERE IN MEDFORD, DETROIT HAVE
CLOSE TIES. ADAMSES LIVE IN FORT
MYERS TONIGHT, KIM. THERE’S JUST
DAMAGE EVERYWHERE. THERE IS AND
THERE IS AN ACTIVE, ONGOING
SEARCH AND RESCUE MISSION RIGHT
NOW, AS OF TWO O’CLOCK THIS
AFTERNOON OVER 500 PEOPLE HAVE
BEEN RESCUED. INLAY AND
CHARLOTTE COUNTY’S THAT INCLUDES
THE FORT MYERS AREA AS MUCH AS 3
TO 4 FT. OF WATER STILL IN
PEOPLE’S HOMES RIGHT NOW, PEOPLE
ARE ALSO STARTING TO LINE UP
ALREADY LESS THAN 24. HOURS
AFTER THE STORM, THEY ARE LINED
UP FOR GAS AND THEY ARE SO
DESPERATE THAT THEY’RE WILLING
TO GET GAS UNDER AN AWNING THAT
HAS ALREADY COLLAPSED. IT IS
NERVE WRACKING, STANDING HERE
WATCHING CAR AFTER CAR FILL UP
UNDER AN AWNING THAT TO ME,
LOOKS LIKE IT COULD COLLAPSE ALL
THE WAY AT ANY MOMENT. ONE OF
THE BIGGEST PROBLEMS HERE IN LEE
COUNTY IS FLOODING. MY
PHOTOGRAPHER NORMAN. I WENT
AROUND THE AREA TODAY. WE WENT
ALL THE WAY NORTH OF SARASOTA,
LOOKING FOR HOMES OF PEOPLE THAT
LIVE IN METRO DETROIT THAT ARE
CONCERNED ABOUT THEIR LOVED
ONES. FIRST STOP. SARASOTA’S
TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS DOWN
TREES AND STREET FLOODING BECAME
MUCH WORSE. THE CLOSER WE GOT TO
THE BARRIER ISLANDS BY DAYBREAK
, RESIDENTS OF SIESTA KEY
STARTED SHOWING UP AT THE
CAUSEWAY, ONLY TO BE TURNED AWAY
BY LOCAL POLICE. NEXT WE HEADED
BACK TO HARD HIT VENICE TO CHECK
ON THE HOME OF A LOCAL 4 VIEWER
THAT REACHED OUT TO US FROM
GROSSE POINTE. ON THE WAY WE
SUDDENLY SPOTTED A FAMILY TRYING
TO ESCAPE THEIR FLOODED HOMES.
THE GRANDMOTHER AND MOTHER HAD
FALLEN IN THE MUCK AND HIGH
WATER A LONG NIGHT WITH HIGH
WINDS AND RISING WATERS HAD LEFT
THEM EXHAUSTED. ONE OF THE
WOMEN, MARLENE TOLD ME NEARLY
EVERYTHING WAS UNDERWATER FROM
PHOTOS TO FURNITURE ON THE ROAD
AGAIN. WE GOT WITHIN ONE BLOCK
OF GROSS POINTER, JEN KENDALL’S
HOME AND HAD TO TURN BACK
BECAUSE THE WATER WAS JUST TOO
HIGH. FRUSTRATING REALITY FOR SO
MANY PEOPLE HERE IN FLORIDA,
JUST TRYING TO GET BACK HOME.
COMING UP TONIGHT AT SIX. WE GOT
A MESSAGE FROM A WOMAN IN
PLYMOUTH WHO WAS VERY CONCERNED
ABOUT HER MOM WHO LIVES IN
ROTUNDA. NOW THAT IS RIGHT,
WHERE THE EYE OF HURRICANE IAN
MADE LANDFALL. SHE’S RIGHT ON
CHARLOTTE HARBOR COMING UP
TONIGHT AT SIX. WE WENT TO CHECK
ON HER MOM AND WE’LL SHOW YOU
WHAT HAPPENS. WE LOOK FORWARD TO
YOUR REPORT COMING UP AT SIX. AS
WE KNOW SO MANY PEOPLE HAVE TIES
TO THE AREA. CAN WE KNOW THAT
YOU’VE BEEN THERE SINCE BEFORE
THE STORM HIT? YOU WERE THERE
LAST NIGHT? NOT ABLE TO REALLY
GET A GOOD TELEVISION SIGNAL
OUT. TELL US WHAT YOUR
EXPERIENCE WAS LIKE GOING
THROUGH THAT LEADING UP TO
TODAY. LAST NIGHT WAS A LONG
NIGHT FOR PEOPLE IN VENICE.
THAT’S WHERE WE WERE. IT’S ONE
OF THE HARDEST HIT AREAS. THE
WINDS WERE CONSTANT ALL NIGHT
LONG. NO POWER IN THE HOTEL THAT
WE WERE TAKING SHELTER IN, UM,
THE SECOND FLOOR. THEY HAD
EVACUATED A NURSING HOME LAST
MINUTE, SO THE SECOND FLOOR WAS
ALL NURSING HOME RESIDENTS THAT
NEEDED CARE AND NURSES, BUT THEY
HAD NO POWER. AH IT WAS A TOUGH
NIGHT WE TRIED TO LEAVE IN THE
MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT TO HEAD
NORTH TO START SURVEYING THE
DAMAGE, BUT IT WAS JUST TOO
DANGEROUS AND WE HAD TO THINK OF
OUR SAFETY, FIRST STREET
FLOODING. THAT’S THE BIGGEST
CONCERN. IN FACT, IN HURRICANES
IN THE US, THE BIGGEST THREAT
FOR LOSS OF LIFE IS NOT WIND. WE
FOCUS SO MUCH ON THE WIND WATER
. METEOROLOGISTS ALWAYS SAY HIDE
FROM WIND RUN FROM WATER 83% OF
THE DEATHS THAT HAPPENED IN LAND
FALLING HURRICANES IN THE U. S.
COME FROM WATER NOT FROM WIND,
AND THAT’S THE PROBLEM HERE
TODAY IN FORT MYERS, JUST
DEVASTATING PICTURES COMING OUT
OF THAT PART OF FLORIDA AND WE