that south carolina emergency manager mobile app. the damage assessment report is on the tools section of the main men aye. it's pretty easy to get to -- menu. it's pretty easy to get to, i checked it out last night. sir? >> thank you, governor. annette edwards. executive director for the south carolina office of regulatory staff. so around 10:30 this morning statewide we had outages of around 32,927. as of around 12:25 today, we're already over 69,000. i do anticipate that those outage numbers will climb. the couriers are standing at the ready and they will go out and do restoration efforts but only when it's safe to do so. so when those winds get to about 30 miles per hour, the crews that are out there, you'll see them pause. so for customers who currently have power, because i expect the number to climb, please do take a moment and charge your phones, do those things that you needed to while you still have some power. for those that are experiencing an out and, do notify your utility. so that they are aware. and if you are out and

south carolina is great because we take care of each other. if we have a neighbor, friend able to take care of themselves, check on them when it safe and make sure they are okay and provide assistance they need. working together we will be safe and get through this successfully. >> thank you. >> i am mark, all of our personnel have been on standby since day before yesterday we began assisting the highway patrol, major highways, major roadways and restarted out 3:00 p.m. yesterday and will continue until after the storm. there are areas of the state when he to transition into our security missions the request to do that. i've been in contact with sheriff's along the coastal this morning as well as. we will continue to talk with them and communicate and if they have any needs, we will assist them with security missions. >> are there any questions? >> are you recommending a certain time when people leave their structures? >> we prefer the wind be gone but we will provide that information and will have another press conference. this is something p

we urge residents in south carolina and everyone in its path to remain vigilant. florida as we continue to monitor the situation in south carolina and overall path of the storm, search and rescue operations remain underway in florida. we must rescue teams are part of the unified effort to conduct operation by air, land and sea in coordination with federal partners as well as state and local officials. as part of this effort will is activated 5004 national guard members as well as another 2000 members from other states through mutual aid to help with search and rescue operations, operations and other protective measures. coast guard colleagues provide an update on their search and rescue efforts of this command in a later brief. homeland security secretary mayorkas activated dhs search capacity force yesterday comprised of 7500 members from other federal agencies in the staffing pattern to help us address the response recovery needs following the storm. this will enhance efforts to florida as well as the eastern seaboard as the storm continues to move. nearly 3000

we pray for south carolina safety. meanwhile, american red cross is helping florida rebuild in the wake of hurricane ian. leaving more than 1.9 million people in florida currently without power. disaster relief now in full gear, and anything can help that you want to give. if you want to help those affected by this historic storm, visit redcross.org/fox forward. we are doing everything we can to help here at fox. we hope you will, too. thank you to everyone here at fox news for the latest, stick here with "america reports." >> whenever it gets here, hopefully it won't be as bad as what we think it is. >> literally watched my house disappear with everything in it. >> hang on tight, we'll take care of you. >> it's kind of devastating, actually, i'm starting to shake

all of the coastline of south carolina. and much of the coastline of north carolina. so we know that the impacts are there. and environmentally speaking, because this is the low country, and southern south carolina around charleston, into sullivan's island, into it is so beach. these are fragile areas. where an inundation of water is potentially catastrophic. environmentally, and people wise, we saw what happened in fort myers, and the naples area. so devastating when this was a category four hurricane. now there is a state of emergency out for the entire state of south carolina. it looks like that that may expand as it goes through time. but john, i just really want to emphasize at the top of the hour. we'll get another update so we can kind of perhaps a nail down. right now the center of this hurricane is about 180 miles to the south of charleston. so it's fairly close but there is still enough time this could pick up some more energy. and we will kind of sit still playing this guessing game with it. but it looks like that south carolina coast is so vulnerable. >> a

and then it brings a bunch of moisture up into south carolina south carolina, north carolina and ultimately virginia. rain will be a huge part of this. a detailed look at where the heaviest rain will be coming on and win. think about this afternoon into this evening is where you will see a bunch of rain across the region and i will leave you with the rainfall totals. flooding will be a huge concern. widespread 6 inches of rain, but definitely areas up to 8 inches of rain and a foot piled on top of the storm surge on the coast. flooding is one of the major concerns. back over to you. >> todd: i covered hurricanes for fox and myrtle beach a couple of years ago. that was basically a mist there was still a lot of problems associated with the most. i hesitate when this happened gets to myrtle beach. thank you. ten people are dead and 200 residents in the dark after carving a destructive path through the state. >> carley: extensive recovery after cat 4 laura naples south f fort myers. what is the damage you are seeing? we see a little bit of it behind you right now. is the town yet in recovery mo

my message to the people of south carolina is simple. please listen to all the warnings and directions from local officials and follow their instructions. as you all know, the situation in florida is far more devastating. we are just beginning to see the scale of the destruction. likely to rank among the worst of the nation's, and worst in the nation's history. you have all seen on television homes and property wiped out. it's going to take months, years to rebuild. and our hearts go out to all those folks whose lives have been absolutely devastated by the storm. america's heart is literally breaking just watching people watch it on television. i just want the people of florida to know we see what you are going through and we are with you. we will do everything we can for you. i say to the rest of america, just imagine yourself in that situation. water rising, walls collapsing, streets turned literally into rivers, charter boats on top of automobiles, watching the home and the community you worked so hard to establish literally washed aw

south carolina, beautiful area. every area around the coast and south carolina is gorgeous. it's beautiful. but it is very very vulnerable. it is low country, and therefore summertime rains can really flood this region. in charleston, it is very vulnerable. it is always been vulnerable. but it has charm, it is history, a lot of history! and a system like this is going to be devastating for charleston. here is its position about 175 miles to the south, southeast of charleston. the entire coastline is under a hurricane warning. we know that somewhere along the south carolina coast, this is going to make landfall. and maybe about the time in charleston harbor, about midday is when it's going to be high tide. so there could be a storm surge of 4 to 7 feet. but not just south carolina, all the way up into north carolina. as a matter of fact, computer models are saying on the order of 5 to 10 inches of rainfall, but some areas could pick up 10 to 12, 20. gus to 100, traveling to the north and northwest. but that rain field is so broad and look at some of the wind. gus thank assign

pawly's island pier, part of it was flowing south. with us now, nancy mace in south carolina. her district includes charmston and the hard hit areas. congresswoman, how are things there now? >> well, i'm looking out the windows right now. we see the calm after the storm. most of the rain and wind is significantly died down. north of here, about an hour north of charleston, south carolina's coast may be seeing the largest storm surge since hurricane hugo 33 years ago. pawly's island, garden city, those areas have been hard hit an hour north of here. the images are similar to florida, seeing the storm surge of 7 to 9 feet add high tide. i just got off the phone with the governor's office. we're seeing about 70,000 people without power. we just god power back on isles la palms. we're grateful charleston was not as hard hit. to the folks north of us, we'll be helping clean up there, to the north of myrtle beach. >> neil: and the storm was very dangerous and it's better than it could have been but still pretty bad. i'm wondering for you and your daughters going through this, what w

we're joined by south carolina nancy mace. congresswoman, what does your home state of south carolina need right now? we're seeing life threatening storm surges hitting the coast there. >> it may be some of the worst storm surges that south carolina has seen since hurricane hugo 33 years ago. i'm in charleston, south carolina, right now on poly's island south of myrtle beach. devastating images and video of homes under water, retail under water. it's going to be devastating cleanup for days and weeks to come. elizabeth: we hear florida needs energy and portable water. literally parts of the grid are totally offline still. >> fortunately, south carolina is no stranger to these kinds of storms much like florida and when ian hit, hurricane ian hit south carolina, it was a category 1. we have about 100,000 residents along the coast and fraction fls those that still do not have power and doesn't compare to the millions of people still out of power, that are stuck and aren't able to get out of their communities or cities or towns an

i'm in clemson, south carolina. they're just putting up the stands for a home -- "game day" will be here. most of south carolina will be good to go. what i worry the most about is the flooding that comes from the rain. joaquin and harvey stayed over, right? never went away. these rivers coming down from north carolina flood. this could be a couple days before we realize how much damage can be done here. the flooding is terrible. a lot of property damage. get off the roads. power lines down. you can get electrocuted. let's ride this thing out. i do worry about what is to come if it stalls out and dumps a bunch of rain. joaquin and harvey were devastating because of the flooding. >> martha: harvey dropped 50 inches of rain. >> unbelievable. never went away. >> that's right. we were down there covering it. we thought the same thing. where is this water going to go? your colleague, senator tim scott says you know, you get used to these hurricanes and you tend to take them for granted. that's a worry when you have these

molly line is joining us from charleston, south carolina. talk to us about what's going on since we checked in last hour. >> we are still fighting these heavy bands of wind that have been coming through. right now we are having a moment where i can talk to you, gillian. the rain has been coming down, some concerns about flooding, particularly in the downtown and the lower areas and keeping an eye on that. but the bands of wind, over 100,000 people without power, they are working to get the lights back on, and this is the ashley river, runs along the side of charleston, south carolina. we have been watching these boats bobbing in the water, trying to keep things steady. the dock master is out there tying things back down, and people do seem to be, for the most part, staying off the roads. the james island highway up here, this big bridge, and we have not seen that much traffic. so at least during these really impactful hours, authorities have been begging to stay inside, it does appear for the most part people are going that. we have seen a f

and senator lindsey graham is as south carolina now feels ian's wrath. we begin with our chief

really getting pretty close to the coast of south carolina. it was moving north of 14, now at 15 miles per hour. it's continuing to get a little faster. so that will continue as we work our way inland. it's really important to realize it's not just that center point. it really is -- it's been a large storm for most of its lifetime. hurricane force winds extend out 70 miles. and the latest i saw, tropical storm force winds, about 275 miles out from the center. it's big. so it's not just the folks right around the center. there's quite a few communities that see some of these strong winds. did want to say, there's still river flooding back in florida and some of that, it's important that water doesn't drain very fast. so some of those rivers could stay at flood stage and several locations, actually, record flood, could be that way for days, even more than a week. so just something to think about with time. we're not over yet. we're very close to the south carolina coast. the impact, winds, rain bands have already started. there's already been so

my message people of south carolina is simple. please listen to all the warnings and directions from local officials and follow theirinstructions . and as you all know the situation in florida is far more devastating. we're just beginning to see the scale of that destruction . it's ranking among the worst in the nation's history. you've all seen the seed on television. homes and property wiped out. it's going to take months, years to rebuild and our hearts go out to all those folks whose lives have been devastated by the storm . america's heart is literally breaking as we're watching people. i just want the people of florida to know we see what you're going through and we're with you and we want to do everything we can for you. just imagine yourself in that situation, water rising, walls collapsing. streets turning literally into rivers. charter boats on top of automobiles. watching the home and community work so hard to establish literally washed away. and folks across the country are now waiting to hear from parents and grandpar

doctor zeller, director of the south carolina health and environmental control . we are working closely with our healthcare facilities, drinking wastewater facilities to ensure they already. we are ready and prepared to weather this storm successfully we have teams raising the moments notice if we have any problems . importantly as the storm is passing through his easy. we had no one i want to see that going. we will store and that we need. make these decisions. please stay indoors. winds are blowing hard away from windows. the floodwaters not only have a risk of drowning, they can havebacteria or toxic substances.if you do end up with the floodwater , rinse off, get fresh clothes on. that will help protect you. be careful with carbon monoxide. people the. make sure the generator prevented outside. it is colorless, odorless, you will never know it's there but you. add fuel to a hot generator because that can cause an explosion. remember all shellfish beds are currently closed for harvesting because of the toxic so do not be harvesting shellfish sometimes we have f

we have our team live on the ground in south carolina. and there in florida, too, where we are only just starting to really get a grip on the extent of ian's destruction. look at the pictures in front of you. this is what it looks like, including in lee county, where rescue crews, this is a live look now, a live look at that location, rescue crews are trying to get to people, with millions of floridians without power and water. we're going to take you live to the hardest-hit areas including lee county, which you're looking at now, for what is expected to be obviously a years-long recovery. i'm halle jackson in washington. let's get to shaq brewster live for us in charleston, south carolina, nbc news meteorologist janice is with us today. shaq ian has made landfall in the last 40 minutes. tell us what you're seeing. >> the landfall was several miles up here from charleston, and that does not mean that charles was not impacted by this storm. throughout the afternoon and into the morning, and throughout the afternoon, we saw heavy rain bands

south carolina's mayor says our city is as ready as it can never be. now with this is the vice admiral of the us coast guard deputy commander for operations. thank you for taking the time. how do things look from your perspective? >> thank you, neil. i've been watching the energy you have been showing on fox business. needless to say, just heartbreaking some of the things we are seeing but i can assure you coast guard rescue teams, coast guard field operators have been working around the clock since landfall against our primary purpose to save lives. in the past 24 hours since the storm made landfall the coast guard has saved 117 people and the pets that come with the families we rescued and we suspect that number will go up as we continue rescue operations. it is tightly synchronized response between federal responders with fema and others and the state of florida and the state of south carolina, north carolina and georgia and the localities doing these rescues, they will continue as long as we need them to. neil: with so many in florida without power

again, cnn -- 's in myrtle beach, south carolina. following this report. >> here in myrtle beach, residents are bracing for the impacts from hurricanes and. right now, we are at myrtle beach state park where the waves are already starting to look rough, you can see behind me, that's a lot more rough than it usually is. and, fact a double red flag warning in effect meaning that the local officials here want no one in that water. it's actually as a part to not see everybody in the water. you see one or two surfers trying to test their limits. there is a hurricane warning in effect some gust of winds around 20 to 25 miles per hour. it is a factor winds at this point. there's only a light drizzle, major impact of the hurricane expected to come into the overnight and early morning hours. short time ago, i did speak to the horry county management. they are in a wait and see mode, knowing that they are soon going to feel the impacts of the hurricane as i'm just getting hit by another gust of wind here. we know that there is a potential for

we're on the south carolina coast line. where we are, we're feeling the wind pick up in intensity hour by hour. ian is on the way. it's expected to make landfall right here where we are as a category 1 hurricane around midday, and it's getting stronger. right now the wind speeds are at 85 miles per hour. seeing the damage ian has already done, residents just north of florida are doing their best to prepare as the storm heads their way. >> it's going to be blowing strong winds, and it's going to be all over the state at different levels. >> reporter: the national hurricane center warns ian could produce life-threatening flooding, storm surge, and strong winds from georgia up through south carolina. >> this storm can still be dangerous and even deadly. heavy rains up to 7 inches in some areas are likely to bring flooding. landslides are a threat in our mountains, and there's a chance of tornados statewide. >> reporter: in bryan county, georgia, conditions on the water started getting rough midday yesterday. the coast guard he

my message to the people of south carolina is simple. please listen to all the warnings and directions from local officials and physical low their instructions. and as you all know, the situation in florida is far more devastating. we're just beginning to see the scale of that destruction. it's likely to rank among the worst in the nation's history. you have all seen on television homes and property wiped out. it's going to take months, years, to rebuild. and our hearts go out to all those folks whose lives have been devastated by this storm. america's heart is literally breaking. just watching people watching on television. i just want the people of florida to know, we see what you're going through. we're with you. we're going to do everything we can for you. i say to the rest of america, just imagine yourself in that situation. water rising. walls collapsing. streets turned literally into rivers. charter boats on top of automobiles. watching the home and the community you worked so hard to establish literally washed away. and folks acr

my message to the people of south carolina is simple. please listen to all the warnings and directions from local officials and follow their instructions. and as you all know, the situation in florida is far more devastating. we're just beginning to see the scale of that destruction. it's likely to rank among the worst of the nation's history. you'll all have seen on television homes and property wiped out. it's going to take months, years to rebuild. our hearts go out to all those folks whose lives have been devastated by the storm. america's heart is literally breaking. just watching people watch it on television. i just want the people florida to know we see what you're going through. we're with you. we're going to do everything we can for you. i say to the rest of america, imagine yourself in that situation. water rising, walls collapsing, streets turned into literally i rivers. charter boats on top of automobiles. watching the home and the community work so hard to establish, literally washed away. and folks across the country are n

people of south carolina, pay attention. that could be you. >> ainsley: it hit in florida as a cat 4. carolina is a cat 1. we are expecting the governor t talk down in florida. we'll be back. ♪ ♪ ults with insomnia. and i'm glad i found it. you wouldn't believe some of the things people suggested to help me sleep. nature sounds? ahh, no thanks. my friend's white noise idea. nope. and i'm not counting sheep. not on the...carpet. insomnia can impact both my days and my nights. so i know how important a good night's sleep is. that's why i take quviviq nightly. quviviq could help you fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer; and more sleep at night may mean feeling less tired during the day. maybe i should tell them how it works, taye? quviviq works differently than medications you may have taken in the past. quviviq is thought to target one of the biological causes of insomnia - overactive wake signals. do not take quviviq if you have narcolepsy. don't drink alcohol while taking quviviq or drive or operate heavy machinery

we have our team live on the ground in south carolina. and there in florida, too, where we are only just starting to really get a grip on the

it's churning off the georgia and south carolina coast. and this is a live look at row d'ante, north carolina north of where ian everyone i

with hurricane ian accelerating around to the south carolina coast. with over 6.2 million people under a hurricane warning here. sandbags lining the charleston streets, the governor says he knows what is coming. and now, zooming out, still trying to comprehend the tol tolerating pain, and the death toll. and now, sanibel island is only reachable by boat, and city after city in florida decimated by hurricane ian. and in fort myers, decimated by heaps of concrete and debris and the people trying to pick up their lives and send help. >> we lost everything last night, everything. the family is okay, and the dogs are okay, and the parents are okay, and we have lost everything, and we have been in the house since 1987, and everything is gone, pictures, memories, everything. >> and now, going to charleston where the community is waiting, and we have miguel marcus there, and the high tide just as the hurricane is set to come ashore, and what are you seeing? >> yeah, it is pretty miserable right now, and this is the worst that we have seen. the winds are reall

along the central and northern coast of south carolina. charleston apparently was in the line of sight in the cone. we were looking at it earlier in the day. it shifted a little further north along the south carolina coast. it isn't just south carolina and north carolina, it is virginia and maryland and west virginia where it will advance northward. we are looking at fairly substantial rainfall totals across south carolina. as we look at this, all the way from charleston and into the north carolina coast we could see substantial rainfall. four to eight will be the common comments but there could be 10 to 20 inches. as the storm system approaches the coast if it were charleston, midday. that is about the time of high tide. that will produce a storm surge of four to seven feet possible. not just charleston but sullivan's islanders, buford, garden city, surf side, myrtle beach. i know this area so well. i hope you have a plan and kept your important personnel documents. if you are stranded that you have a plan for that as well. and hopefully

the officials here in south carolina are. they're urging people to be weary not only of the rain, which could drop up to a foot of water here in this area, but also the storm surge. several feet anticipated. so they're warning people about that and the high winds, which could lead to a multitude of power outages. a big concern, utility crews standing by, getting ready to deploy in the wake of this storm. really they're concerned about human beings being out on the roads and urging people to stay home and find a safe place to hunker down. if you're in a low-lying areas that got hit hard in recent hurricanes like matthew, irma, now is the time to take precautions. this is the major of charleston. >> no evacuation order has been given. but if you live in a home that flooded, got water in your home during a recent hurricane, i would highly advise you consider relocating by way of one of the shelters or just staying with someone else. because there will be water tomorrow in this city. >> so high winds, flash flooding. a lieutenant

i want to bring in the mayor of port royal, south carolina. it's about 30 miles north of hilton head. mayor, thanks for joining us p. to a certain extent, and i'm using this word in a light way, but you guys got a little lucky because you're south of charleston, right, the storm is going to be making landfall around georgetown, south carolina, nonetheless, i'm sure you feeling winds and rain there. how are folks preparing for what may be to come? >> yeah, thank you, first of all, for having me and first of all, we're going to keep our friends to the north and what's happened down in florida in our prayers and our thoughts. we have prepared for this storm and if you think about it, this is actually our third storm in five years that we've prepared for. so port royal and the blue water area has done everything they need to do to be prepared. but, yes, we have gotten lucky at this point. we're at high tide. it looks like flooding is going to be minimal to none. storm force at best. we're looking very good at this point. if we can make it through

the storm has made its second landfall in south carolina. ian coming ashore for a second time as a category one hurricane north and south carolina, bracing for the potential of life threatening storm surges, up to seven ft. as well as winds up to 85 mph and flooding up through southern virginia. in charleston residents preparing as best as they can, while officials encourage them to stay indoors. as the storm moves through the area. we just secured the house and, you know the cars and the garages and, yeah, waiting. what will happen next? stay indoors. stay off the roads. it's the wind coupled with the trees with the flying debris. meanwhile in florida residents are taking in the extent of the destruction left behind by the powerful storm took everything from everyone. it's just devastating , tearing through entire communities, leaving millions without power and some stranded due to impassable roads and bridges. just want the people of florida to know. we see what you're going through and we're with you. we're going to do everything we can f

let's go further south in south carolina. joining us right now is john mckhan, the mayor of hilton head island. and it is moving east. and that is good news for you guys. what are you seeing right now? >> yes, it is good news. it is good news but in the meantime, our hearts and prayers go out to all of the floridians that suffered so much over the last 48 hours. what a tragedy. >> it is -- it is all of the words that you used don't seem to do it justice. how surreal it looks. the devastation. it is hard to imagine. and it must be pretty unsettled as the mayor of a town that could be seeing some damage to know that that same storm is coming your way right now. how are you feeling? >> well when you're an island, you take a lot of precautions for prepare for these. we have a world class ems and fire department. we prepare for this all year long. our tourists an people know that we're ready. we've been very blessed this time. it looks like the bulk will pass us by. we'll get a high tide and get? flooding. the wind just subsided a

charleston, south carolina. south carolina getting hit. could affect myrtle beach north on the edge of north carolina. what do you expect for the folks there that are watching this morning and that are worried? >> evacuate if they tell you. to say and know that it's not just the cone itself. can you actually see as far as east and as far as west the forecast and the storm is very large. so the impact can go outside of that cone. be prepared for the conditions. the number one thing is you cannot outrun the water. you can shelter from wind but you cannot outrun the water and surge is deadly. >> ainsley: surge can be 7 to 9 feet. that's basically a story. that's high. that's high. >> absolutely. when you think about a surge. it's coming in. it's the wave action pushing that water up against the shoreline and come around high tide. we are looking at high tide right about midday and looking at landfall after that. >> thank you, amy. well, for continuing coverage of ian, you can download the fox weather app. and stream fox weather 24/7. 36 after

south carolina and georgia. >> pete: expected to make landfall in south carolina later today. >> brian: doug luzader in charleston what does it feel like. >> we are starting to see some sunlight around here now. although diminished of because of the storm. feel like you got a target on your back too in charleston. this is the area hit pretty hard we think by these hurricane force winds. all of south carolina is now under a hurricane warning. you know, you don't feel a sense of dread in the atmosphere around here. a lot of folks are going to weather this storm out. people have left their boats here in the docks behind us here in charleston. you know, the concern is the combination of high tide along with a storm surge. and that could cause some significant flooding under the best of circumstances. charleston can have some flooding just from a high tide. you add that 4 to 7-foot storm surge and we could see some significant flooding. now, one of the things or among the things that charleston, the city of charleston did to prepare this open up all the parking garages. get your cars above

that's stretching from inner south carolina, south of columbia, all the way up into north carolina, towards fayetteville. that's about a 265 mile diameter. timing on this, we pushed the time back a little bit. we are headed into the afternoon and early evening, we see this make landfall. as it does make land, it will weaken. we are still looking at a major rain event into roanoke, greensboro tonight through saturday. a look at the storm surge map. what we have here is as the storm -- this angle it's taking of approach, headed towards georgetown, we will see a lot of the worst storm surge south of myrtle beach and into myrtle beach. we will see an outflow through charleston. high tide, this may work in the favor of myrtle beach. high tide is occurring at 11:31 p.m., later than the storm is making landfall. this is still a hurricane. we are still looking at substantial storm surge possible in areas like myrtle beach. >> four to seven feet of storm surge is awfully dangerous. thanks so much. we will check back with you. >>> joining me now is charleston's mayor. thank you for being with us. cha

the new images tonight of hurricane ian as it approached south carolina. the storm surge there in garden city. slag right into town. the eye wall arriving, battering litchfield beach. those pictures right there. and tonight we are seeing these images again, the rescues on the water. high water vehicles navigating the storm, rescuing families there. in southwest florida, the horror. the scope coming into sharper focus tonight. ft. myers hardest hit, homes wiped away. our team make it to sanibel island and what they found. unsure about the fate of many throughout their community. the coast card arriving with helicopters, lifting survivors to safety. rob marciano taracking this int the night. we begin with elwyn lopez in charleston, south carolina for us. >> reporter: tonight, ian is on the move, making a third u.s. landfall as a strong cat-1 hurricane with 85-mile-an-hour inds. roaring on shore in south carolina's low country at the worst possibly time, during high tide. >> the surge is coming in hard! >> reporter: ian's powerful storm surge sending a wave o

1 hurricane near georgetown, south carolina. winds 85 miles per hour. it has since been downgraded, no longer a hurricane, but still likely to produce very gusty winds. look at some of the winds we sauteed. a high gust-- 92 miles per hour. in places like charleston. 68--perwinds nd we've got a as it comes inland and likely to produce very heavy rain, very gusty winds, and the surge should begin to come down overnight tonight. future radar shows a lot of rain spreading like the i-95 corridor, and this weekend, right into the northeast. it's not leaving our shores, norah, until some time early monday morning. >> o'donnell: mike, thank you. tonight, the confirmed death toll in florida stands at 22, but that number is expected to rise. evacuated residents have begun returning to their homes, only to find neighborhoods they no longer recognize. cbs' manuel bojorquez is in hard-hit fort myers. good evening, manuel. >> reporter: good evening, norah. the hurricane may have moved on, but as you can see, the effects of ian remain. there a

and portions of south carolina. ana? >> yes, huge threats and danger lurking for the folks. thank you, jennifer gray. and ian is relentless, and already one of the strongest hurricanes to ever slam into florida, and these images capture only a thumbnail view of the devastation. this is fort myers beach where the destruction stretches as far as the eye can see. a town councilman says that 90% of the island is destroyed. randi kaye is there in fort myers beach, and randi, you reached there a short time ago, and what are you seeing? >> we are just on the other side of that beach area, ana, the other side of the bridge, and we are here in a big tourism area. i wanted to show you that we are at the san carlos rv resort as it is called, and this right here, this empty lot used to have a whole bunch of rvs in there, and i am told by people who know it well, and they were parked there in the storm, and they have disappeared. they either floated away or were taken a way by the wind speeds. this is what the rv park looks like

what are officials in south carolina doing to prepare for the storm? >> reporter: jose, yesterday was really the day to prepare. and the governor said, look, have an emergency plan in place. especially as we go throughout the day today and the water level hads rise. we have been out here for several hours. i can tell you the conditions have really gotten a lot worse. i mean, right now the big headline, as you can see, the wind gusts right now. you might see some of the sea grass behind me is shaking around. the boats also wobbling around. they are tethered pretty well. but the rain is pretty intense. we're getting hit with several bands of intense rain, but things are supposed to get worse as we get closer to landfall. just listening to bill there, it sounds like the landfall is supposed to be later on this afternoon, which is some good news, because we have been closely monitoring the timing of the storm because of high tide, because there's that potential of high tide and then landfall. then we still have that storm surge warning in place. that storm

friends and family in southeast georgia, south carolina, know if you are on the coastal region, inland, flooding due to storm surge could be an issue for you, as well. >> absolutely, stay with fox weather, we'll be here taking you through the storm all day long, watching hurricane ian, we have seen the damage it has done in southwest florida. >> fox news alert, central florida being pounded with 75 mile per hour winds as hurricane ian inches east as category one hurricane. >> todd: you are watching "fox and friends first" on thursday morning, i'm todd piro. >> carley: i'm carley shimkus, central and northeast florida could get up to 20 inches of rain and storm surge is a major threat across the state. residents are urged to stay inside. our team is on the ground and crews mobilize and janice dean is tracking ian in new york city. >> todd: lauren, we begin our coverage with you in st. pete. >> in st. pete beach, they were prepping for the worst, but it struck more southeast. let me show you what is looked like yesterday in the naples, fort myers area. ian came with category four, wind s

s landfall here in south carolina . as we head through the day it's going to be late friday morning into the middle of the day here, and it's going to be about charleston to myrtle beach somewhere around the georgetown area with it. we do have the risk for tornadoes and some very strong winds. then on top of that, these winds of more than 80 mph in some spots will be pushing seawater towards the coast. that's going to create storm surge, unfortunately from charleston to myrtle beach. more than six ft. possible that can be deadly stating and deadly. unfortunately in the storm's not fiished yet and works northward , even as we go through friday night into the weekend, where it hangs out and brings him heavy rainfall, so as we make it through time here, you can see that heavy rain working into the coast even for the middle of the day, still pushing the water into the north carolina coast to and we'll see these outer bands reaches far north as virginia by friday night, lots of rainfall out there. it does start to pull apart

we are fighting for that this week in south carolina. and i would really invite any people from south carolina to take this opportunity to pick up the phone and call their state senator, let them know exactly how they feel about this near total ban coming their way. >> in the face of these draconian laws in many states, you operate more than a dozen facilities across several states. can you give us some insight to calls that you have gotten or concerns that you've heard from patients since roe was reversed by the supreme court? >> yeah. i mean, the day the dobbs decision was released, that day our call -- was increased by half. the next day, more than doubled. and that call a calfskin tenure to stay at that very high level. we are seeing and a nerd -- a normal surge of patients turning to us from all across the southeast. we are patient drive herself from new orleans to roanoke. another from austin to asheville. they do this alone, overnight, by themselves. desperate but determined to get the care that they deserve and need it. these sce

so along that south carolina coast. so it's a slow-moving storm and may be there for a bit and weaken again which is what we've seen it do. it has still done a lot of damage as it has weakened and gone north and east. if it goes much more east from south carolina we get a break with open water. unless it hooks back in perhaps enough cooler water to pull it off in that direction east away from us. we'll just follow it. we don't know. it has shifted before. right now the significance of this latest emergency advisory from the hurricane center is that ian is expected to become a hurricane in a few hours shortly after dark tonight and stay that way until it hits south carolina's coast. we're all over it. >> that was my house. my house is gone. so for everyone wondering, it's not livable. >> harris: so heartbreaking. homes swept away, livelihoods destroyed. ian left destruction on the gulf coast that we're just now bringing into focus. a side-by-side comparison. we have been doing that this hour. you can see how much rain ha

north carolina, south carolina and a bit of georgia seeing that as well. as a result, we do have a flood watch. that is ingrained for portions of virginia, north carolina, south carolina, and georgia. also looking at those flash flood warnings. that means flooding is happening at this moment. where we see the red, that's where we see the flooding happening. we saw that on radar, where we see the darker colors. 15 million impacted by the flood alerts. we're concerned for life threatening flooding, storm surge once again, it has been such a water story with ian, and will continue to be so. 13 million people impacted by tropical alerts today. where you see the red, that is a hurricane warning. we're expecting hurricane conditions later on today in south carolina, charleston, myrtle beach, all up and down the island. so here's that storm surge threat. it was such a devastating scene in florida. we're seeing images upon images of what storm surge can do. the power and ferocity of water. we're concerned about that today. probably around georgetown, south carolin

it is now setting its eyes on south carolina. a look at the damage in southern florida. >> when the seararch took out - i mean, within 10 seconds, the water was up to my arms. at that point, you know, to struggling to get out of the hous as a business owner, your bottom line is always top of mind. so start saving by switching to the mobile service designed for small business: comcast business mobile. flexible data plans mean you can get unlimited data or pay by the gig. all on the most reliable 5g network. with no line activation fees or term contracts. saving you up to $500 a year. and it's only available to comcast business internet customers. so boost your bottom line by switching today. comcast business. powering possibilities. ™ ♪ >>> welcome back to -- all of the watching here in the united states, canada, and around the world. this is cnn newsroom. is gaining strength heading toward the south carolina coast. it is not expected to make landfall near myrtle beach in the coming hours. it has already killed at least 19 peo

are you in south carolina right now. >> i am. i'm at home in c ca charleston carolina where we will bear the brunt of landfall today. maria: tell me how you're preparing for this, congresswoman. it's amazing to see the destruction that took place in florida and now the storm after downgrading to a tropical storm has restrengthened and is now a category 1 hurricane headed for where you are. how are you prepareing in. >> well, the last couple of days, and i stayed home this week to help my community, our towns prepare but we were bagging sand to ensure that everyone has the ability to protect themselves against flooding. we just got a flash flood warning. we've been helping folks move their vehicles to higher ground. been especially communicative with our governor, all of our mayors. south carolina's coast is no stranger to storms and hurricanes and tropical storm force winds. this morning we're facing wind gusts up to 65 miles an hour and it hasn't made landfall yet. we have several hours to go before the worst of it gets here but

steve, what do those in south carolina what are they likely looking at? >> good afternoon. heavy rainfall they've seen through the morning time and triggering flash flooding and the storm surge threat from charleston up through myrtle beach and the on shore flow in southwest florida, that'll happen again, albeit a calmer condition. we're looking at 85 to 90 miles an hour gusts pushing in the water leading to 4 toe 7-foot storm surge from really charleston to the north state line into north carolina. this is the latest advisory still sustained winds at 85 miles per hour meaning gusts north of that. the direction is changing and going due north at 14 miles per hour and it sped up and the treasure dropped and that's an indication it's strengthening and it's the warm waters of the atlantic and once it spilled out off the east coast of florida, it's gaining intensity and this area has not been tapped by any storm this season. fiona was hundreds of miles east towards bermuda and looking at it on radar, notice the green, that is going to be the boxes, flash flood warnings in effec

that's what's headed towards south carolina. here in florida, at least 19 people are dead from ian, and that number could very well rise. as of this moment, more than 2 million people in this state remain -- 2 million customers remain without power. you can see some of the flooding that really inundated so much of this state. there have been rescue missions since it was safe to get out. but first we'll go to south carolina where the storm is now headed. cnn's nick valencia is in myrtle beach. nick, what are you seeing so far this morning? >> reporter: it's already cold and wet this morning, john, and we're feeling those tropical storm force winds come in, gusts of, you know, 30 miles per hour at some parts of the day, the morning, i should say. we're right here on the beachfront, and you would think it would be a ghost town, but in the last few minutes, we'll see a little bit of traffic. these beachfront areas, some of these businesses didn't even take precautions. the windows aren't even boarded up. there is a business next to

the governor of south carolina after seeing the catastrophic damage in florida imploring residents in his state not to underestimate this storm. warning, we know what is coming. officials in florida say ian is likely the largest natural disaster in the history of that state, prompting the largest emergency response ever in florida. >> and the toll is coming in. at least 19 people killed so far, that number sadly likely to rise. more than 2 million people in the state -- it's a huge number -- remain without power. in fort myers beach the damage described by officials there is total devastation. look at those pictures, it's like a tornado just swept through there. 90% of that island destroyed, most of the homes there completely flattened. >> it just is destroyed and it's ruined and then you have to start all over again and honestly where do you start? how do you start in this? >> you have to start all over again. the coast guard they've been doing their best working around the clock trying to reach people in the hardest hit areas. you can see a rescue there. sanibel island one of those

we're working the same trajectory right now for georgia and south carolina. we are actively engaged in their eocs. we have liaisons in each of those eocs to ensure we're synced up and we're prepared. >> how could this hurricane be specifically for south carolina, which has a very low-lying -- it's a low-lying city, like charleston. >> certainly storm surge is a concern. we see those numbers in the 6-foot range potentially, maybe even more. we want to say please listen to local officials. please stay safe and stay out of harm's way, and make sure you're doing everything you can to check on your family, friends, and neighbors. >> really worried about those low-lying areas like charleston. the associated fema administrator, anne bink. >>> > our breaking news coverag will continue withth more on th catastrophic destruction caused by hurricane ian in florida as the storm appears to be heading for another landfall likely, as we say, in south carolina. better hearing in three easy steps. one ... screen you're hearing like this. two ... order your eargos on here. thr

they're pointing at the coast of south carolina and georgia. so there's a storm surge there that is expected. now it has all to do with the tides and so here's the idea storm strength a little bit maybe up to 80 miles an hour. now based on the observations we've seen may be a bit stronger. not a crazy strong storm. atmospheric conditions are just not conducive for that. and arriving at the south kelowna coast tomorrow, it says p.m. but i think midday is about the right time frame think about that. and then moving north our talk about the wind part of the storm first. look at this year this red area is where tropical storm is expected in the purple area is where hurricane force winds are possible. in this area here as well tornadoes so this be a terrible day across around the carolinas there. and it moves up into the mountains and the tropical moisture and the mountains are terrible combination. here's what the rain forecast is so wind was first, reina second, and then this rain is going up to at least in the salem area of not up into the mounta