Residents return after hurricane Ian

Now to the latest on the aftermath of Hurricane Ian – homeowners finally returning to their homes nearly two weeks after Ian hit Florida. Many only coming home to the remnants of what once was.

For the first time, anxious homeowners who survived Hurricane Ian — shuttled in by bus to Fort Myers Beach — the only way residents can get onto the barrier island, because of the widespread damage…
Jerry Artrip, a Fort Myers Beach, Florida resident went in knowing there would be devastation — but he wasn’t prepared to find his home flattened — and scattered in pieces…
“Well, my house is gone. As I didn’t know what to think. I spent 22 good years here…it’s tough.”
You can barely make out the road on Estero Boulevard, the main drag on Fort Myers Beach because it’s covered in sand…
It looks like a ghost town.

And what struck us coming into this community – is how eerily quiet it is right now. Emergency responders are keeping close watch—with hazards at nearly every turn.

Thousands in the disaster zone are still without power…

And in hard hit Fort Myers Beach — there’s no running water.

Residents who made it in, left with the items they could carry back on the bus.