Death Tolls by Hurricane Ian Rises to 80 as Met Office Issues Yellow Warning in Wales Due to the Hurricane Fallout

Hurricane Ian's death toll in the southeastern United States has surpassed 80, while some officials face criticism for their reaction to the disaster.

Since Ian made landfall on Florida's Gulf Coast on Wednesday as a Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 249 kilometers per hour, at least 85 storm-related deaths have been reported (155 miles per hour).

According to the Met Office, winds of up to 80mph are expected to pummel portions of Wales this week.

On Wednesday, October 5, a yellow alert was issued for significant sections of the country.

Hurricane Ian's death toll rises above 80

(Photo : NASA/Unsplash)

The sheriff's office in coastal Lee County, which contains devastated Fort Myers, reported 42 deaths, with officials in neighboring counties reporting 39 more, as per Al Jazeera.

Lee County officials have faced concerns over whether they required evacuations promptly.

On Sunday, Cecil Pendergrass, chairman of the county board of commissioners, stated that evacuation orders were issued as soon as the hurricane's path was determined.

According to Pendergrass, some folks elected to ride out the storm.

"I respect their decision," he remarked during a press conference. "But I'm sure many of them are kicking themselves now."

Deanne Criswell, the Federal Emergency Management Agency administrator, stated that the federal government planned to provide a massive quantity of relief, focusing initially on Florida.

On Wednesday, President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden will visit the state.

Criswell told Fox News Sunday that the federal government, including the Coast Guard and the Department of Defense, had sent the most search and rescue assets that he could recall.

At least four individuals were killed in North Carolina, according to authorities.

There were no initial reports of casualties in South Carolina, where Ian made another US landfall on Friday.

Since then, Ian has weakened into an ever-weakening post-tropical storm, but water levels in certain flooded regions have continued to climb, inundating homes and streets that were accessible just a day or two before.

As the entire extent of the disaster became obvious, officials claimed wind-driven ocean surf caused some of the most severe damage, slamming into beachside villages and washing structures away.

Satellite photographs from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration revealed that storm surges had devastated beach homes and a hotel on Florida's Sanibel Island.

Surveys from the ground revealed that the barrier island, a famous tourist destination with a population of 6,000, had been decimated.

Also Read: Eastern Pacific Hurricane: Tropical Storm Kay Expected to Hit Mexico, Southwest US This Week

Met Office issues weather warning for Wales

Monday is expected to be mostly dry and bright, but the Met Office prediction for Wales predicts that winds will pick up overnight, bringing a windy day on Tuesday and extremely strong winds by Wednesday.

The rainy and windy outlook follows a stormy week for the country, which meteorologists blamed on the aftermath of Hurricane Ian, which devastated sections of Florida, as per Wales Online.

A deep low-pressure system is expected to bring gusts of 70 to 80 mph to northern portions of the UK on Wednesday, according to the yellow warning.

If this continues, disruption is to be expected.

However, gusts of 55 to 65 mph are most likely inside the warning region, most likely the northern Irish Sea and areas of eastern Scotland, bringing some more localized consequences.

According to the Met Office's forecast for Wales from Wednesday to Friday, it will be quite windy with coastal gales on Wednesday.

Heavy rain moves fast south, followed by bright periods and blustery showers.

Thursday and Friday will also see sunshine and blustery showers.

Hurricane Ian likely to be the costliest since 1992

Even though Ian has passed, record-breaking river flooding will continue this week over central Florida. The recovery is anticipated to cost insurers up to £42 billion, the most expensive since Hurricane Andrew in 1992, as per The Guardian.

Storm Orlene intensified into a category 4 hurricane last weekend off the coast of southwest Mexico, with winds of 130 mph.

Orlene delivered 120mph winds to the Islas Marias islands on Sunday night before tropical storm conditions were felt over sections of southwestern and west-central Mexico on Monday.

Despite the fact that Orlene is expected to diminish into a tropical depression by Tuesday, Sinaloa, Durango, and Nayarit counties in western Mexico are expected to get 80 to 100mm of rain on Monday, causing flash floods and landslides over this difficult terrain.

Through the second half of this week, extreme rainfall is also forecast in northern India and Nepal.

The Indian provinces of Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh, as well as the Indian capital, New Delhi, could get 100 to 150mm of rain each day between Wednesday and Friday during the late phases of the monsoon season.

Parts of central and western Nepal are also anticipated to see heavy rain and more than 1.5 meters of snowfall in the northern mountain ranges.

Related article: Hurricane Orlene Forecasted to Impact Western Mexico and Southwest United States