Search for migrants after boat sinks off Florida Keys as Hurricane Ian hits
Officials say four Cuban migrants swam to shore and three were rescued from the ocean but 20 more are feared missing
A boat rocks in the waves in the Gulf of Mexico in Dunedin, Florida ahead of Hurricane Ian making landfall on September 28, 2022. - Ian intensified to just shy of catastrophic Category 5 strength Wednesday as its heavy winds began pummelling Florida, with forecasters warning of life-threatening storm surges after leaving millions without power in Cuba. (Photo by Bryan R. Smith / AFP)
The four Cubans reached Stock Island, just east of Key West, and reported their vessel sank because of inclement weather, the US Customs and Border Protection's Walter Slosar said on Twitter.
The US Coast Guard started a search for 23 people and found three survivors about three kilometres south of the island chain, officials said.
The survivors were taken to a local hospital and treated for exhaustion and dehydration.
Air crews continued to search for the remaining migrants.
Young residents react as a truck sprays water while driving past them on a street flooded due to Hurricane Ian, in Charleston, South Carolina, US. Reuters
An aerial image made with a drone shows flooding following Hurricane Ian in a neighbourhood in Orlando, Florida. EPA
A man tows a canoe through a flooded street in New Smyrna Beach, Florida. AFP
An aerial image made with a drone shows flooding near Orlando, Florida. EPA
University of Central Florida students use an inflatable mattress as they leave an apartment complex near campus that was flooded during the hurricane in Orlando, Florida. AP
Boats wrecked by Hurricane Ian in Fort Myers, Florida. AFP
Damaged homes and debris in the aftermath of the hurricane. AP Photo
A section of the Sanibel Causeway in Florida collapsed. AP Photo
Florida resident Brenda Brennan next to a boat that washed up against her harbourside home in Fort Myers. AFP
Cars submerged in a canal in the wake of Hurricane Ian. EPA
Rescuers evacuate residents from the Avante at Orlando nursing home in Florida, during floods caused by Hurricane Ian. AP
An Avante at Orlando resident is taken to safety. AP
A submerged sailing boat off Punta Gorda, Florida, after Hurricane Ian passed through. Reuters
The storm destroyed a section of the Sanibel Causeway that connects an island to the south-western mainland of Florida. AP
Damage caused at Fort Myers Beach, Florida. AP
Boats left in a pile at the Port Sanibel Marina Motel by the storm surge. AP
A vehicle partly submerged on a flooded driveway in Fort Myers. Bloomberg
The storm wrought havoc at this marina, damaging boats. AP
This sign in Bartow, Florida, was blown over by the hurricane. AFP
Tom Park begins cleaning up after Hurricane Ian moved through the Gulf Coast in Punta Gorda, Florida. AFP
A storm surge made some roads almost impassable in Fort Myers. AFP
A worker repairs energy lines during a power cut after Hurricane Ian stormed through Bartow, Florida. AFP
Vehicles make their way through a flooded area after Hurricane Ian tore across Fort Myers, bringing high winds, a storm surge and rain, causing severe damage. AFP
Boats are pushed up on to a causeway after Hurricane Ian hit Fort Myers. Getty Images
A man walks through debris on a street in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian in Punta Gorda, Florida. The storm left much of coastal south-west state in darkness early on Thursday and brought 'catastrophic' flooding. AFP
A spiral staircase and a white pick-up truck are deposited in brushland after Hurricane Ian passed through Sanibel, Florida. AP
A section of the causeway leading to Sanibel was knocked out by Hurricane Ian. AP
Wind blasts across Sarasota Bay as Hurricane Ian churns to the south in Florida. The storm made US landfall at Cayo Costa with wind speeds of more than 225 kilometres per hour. AFP
A flooded street in central Fort Myers. Reuters
More devastation in Fort Myers. Reuters
A man stands in the middle of 7th Street in Ybor City a few hours before the high winds hit Tampa. AP
Traffic lights were no match for Hurricane Ian's power in Fort Myers. Reuters
Debris strewn across a street in Fort Myers. Reuters
Bunting is torn from an awning in Sarasota. AFP
Brent Shaynore runs for cover. AFP
The St Pete pier in St Petersburg, Florida as Hurricane Ian hits. AFP
A man carries his belongings across the street in Ybor City, Tampa. Reuters
Hundreds of trees in the path of Hurricane Ian were uprooted in St Petersburg. AFP
Hurricane Ian intensified to just shy of the strongest Category 5 level, threatening to wreak havoc on the southern US state. AFP
A tree is uprooted by strong winds as Hurricane Ian churns to the south in Sarasota. AFP
Firefighters in Naples, Florida look out at their fire engine standing in water. AP
Even though there was a mandatory evacuation, some residents were either forced or chose to stay to ride out the storm. AP
A pickup truck pulls a man on a kayak on a low-lying road after flooding in aftermath of Hurricane Ian, in Key West, Florida. AP
A boat rocks in the Gulf of Mexico in Dunedin, Florida, before Hurricane Ian makes landfall on Wednesday. AFP
Gusts from Hurricane Ian hit in Punta Gorda, Florida. AP
Technicians monitor Hurricane Ian at Fema in Washington. AFP
Palm trees blow in the wind from Hurricane Ian in Sarasota, Florida. AFP
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre details the Hurricane Ian response. AFP
A vehicle drives through the wind and rain from Hurricane Ian in Sarasota, Florida. AFP
A police patrol drives around a neighbourhood of St Petersburg Beach as the wind from Hurricane Ian arrives in Florida. AFP
Empty grocery shop shelves at Aldi’s in Titusville, Florida, as the state's eastern coast braces for Hurricane Ian. AFP