Hurricane Ian still presents an “extreme threat to everyone in its path,” a top Federal Emergency Management Administration official said Friday as the storm system moved into South Carolina.
The storm is already impacting South Carolina and Georgia, said Anne Bink, a FEMA assistant administrator, adding that “all the hazards that we’ve seen in Florida can impact those further up the coast.”
Director of NOAA’s National Weather Service Ken Graham, at their joint news conference, stressed the dangers of storm surge as Hurricane Ian made landfall after slamming southwest Florida on Wednesday. He said the surge may be as high as five feet in some areas.
“That’s above ground. That’s water up your pant leg,” he said, adding that inland rain is also potentially very dangerous.
The hurricane is “right on the coast,” he said, adding that it was moving at 15 miles per hour and is continuing to “get a little faster.”
Read More: Hurricane Ian barrels into South Carolina after slamming Florida