Recovery efforts are underway in Florida in the aftermath of devastating Hurricane Ian, which continued to move northeast as a tropical storm across the state Thursday on its way to the Carolinas.
Driving the news: More than 2.6 million in the state were without power Thursday after Ian brought strong winds, "life-threatening, catastrophic" flooding, and storm surges as high as 12 feet in some areas.
The big picture: Parts of the Florida mainland experienced widespread power outages and flash flooding as Ian crossed through the state Wednesday after making landfall in the Fort Myers area as a Category 4 hurricane.
As Hurricane Ian hammers southwest Florida, Tampa's lower-income households lack the funds to stock up on hurricane supplies — and rising prices add to that pressure.
The big picture: Millions of Floridians spent the past few days evacuating or gearing up for the storm. But preparation ahead of a hurricane is an added stressor for the 42% of Hillsborough County’s population — and the 46% of neighboring Pinellas County — that can’t afford the basic cost of living.
Hurricane Ian weakened to a tropical storm early Thursday, but the National Hurricane Center warned it's still battering the Florida Peninsula with strong winds, heavy rains and storm surge.
Driving the news: Since making landfallas a high-end Category 4 storm Wednesday afternoon, Ian has knocked out power to nearly 2.5 million people as it inundated densely populated coastal communities known for attracting tourists and retirees — including Fort Myers, Cape Coral, Naples and Sanibel Island.
Hurricane forecasters' worst nightmare came true on Wednesday morning, when what had been a Category 3 storm Tuesday night suddenly jumped almost to Category 5.
Why it matters: It used to be rare for storms to keep strengthening until landfall, let alone do so rapidly. Now it is not — and studies show this is a dangerous sign of climate change.
Hurricane Ian was pummeling communities across the Florida Peninsula on Thursday morning, a day after making landfall as a major Category 4 storm.
The big picture: Ian weakened to a Category 1 storm overnight, but it was still posing a serious threat with its heavy rains, powerful winds, storm surge and life-threatening flooding as it churned toward Georgia and South Carolina, knocking out power to over 2 million Floridians in its wake.
Hurricane Ian was flooding some areas of Florida's west coast with storm surges that could reach up to 18 feet above ground level as it moved across the peninsula after making landfall Wednesday afternoon, the National Hurricane Center said.
Why it matters: Surge numbers that high — 12 to 18 ft — would be unprecedented for the region and some of the highest on record in the U.S.
Much attention has focused on Hurricane Ian's storm surge flooding coastal areas of Florida, setting records in coastal areas like Fort Myers and Naples.
But the National Hurricane Center warned in an advisory Wednesday that "widespread, life-threatening catastrophic flash and urban flooding, with major to record flooding along rivers, is expected to continue across central Florida" — damage that will last after the storm moves away.
The Department of Homeland Security said Wednesday that immigration enforcement activities will not be conducted at sites that provide emergency response and relief in light of Hurricane Ian's landfall as a high-end Category 4 storm.
The big picture: A total of nearly 1.5 million undocumented immigrants live in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina — with Florida home to the largest population, at roughly 772,000, according to the Migrant Policy Institute.
Hurricane Ian made landfall near Cayo Costa, Florida on Wednesday with maximum sustained winds of 150 mph, per the NHC, bringing with it "catastrophic" winds and storm surge.
The big picture: Ian is the strongest hurricane to make landfall in Florida since Hurricane Michael devastated the Florida panhandle in 2018.
Breaching Paris Agreement temperature goals will greatly boost the odds of long-term, destructive droughts on multiple continents and varying types of ecosystems, a peer-reviewed study finds.
Driving the news:New analysis in Climatic Change projects links between drought and warming in China, India, Egypt, Ethiopia, Brazil and Ghana.
Oil and gas companies should not use the impending landfall of Hurricane Ian to raise gas prices, President Biden warned in a speech Wednesday.
Driving the news: Biden said Ian provided "no excuse" for price increases at the pump and that he would ask officials to look into potential "price gouging" if gas companies are found using the storm as a reason to raise rates.
More than 2,000 flights into, within or out of the U.S. were canceled as of mid-morning Wednesday as Hurricane Ian prepares to make landfall in Florida, according to flight tracking website FlightAware.
By the numbers: Florida's Orlando International Airport had canceled at least 316 scheduled departure flights as well as 385 arrival flights, per the tracker.
A mix of politics, policy divides and a ticking clock thwarted legislation to speed permitting for energy projects ranging from fossil fuel pipelines to power transmission to renewables.
Catch up fast: Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) on Tuesday threw in the towel for the moment.
Plastic-munching robots, floating drones and other "smart" contraptions are starting to ply beaches and waterways, systematically removing dangerous debris left by summertime revelers.
Why it matters: Not only are these futuristic technologies highly effective in scouring the areas they patrol, they're also eye-catching novelties that focus public attention on the growing problem of plastic waste, particularly in oceans.
Several tornadoes were reported to have struck Florida after Hurricane Ian rapidly intensified on Tuesday night.
The big picture: Ian's outer bands spawned tornadoes along the east coast of Florida as it reached Category 3 intensity Tuesday ahead of an expected ramp-up to a Category 4 on Wednesday. The tornado threat to southeast Florida counties continued overnight as the major hurricane moved closer.
All of Cuba was without power late Tuesday after Hurricane Ian swept through in the morning and severely flooded the Caribbean island.
The latest: Work was under way to restore power to the nation of 11 million after the electrical grid collapsed due to the major hurricane, per a statement from Cuba's Electric Union.
Sweden's national seismic network said Tuesday that it registered two explosions near mysterious leaks on the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines, which have prompted concerns of sabotage.
