Hurricane Ian Makes Landfall In Cuba; Florida Braces For Damage
Newsy
Ian was forecast to strengthen even more over warm Gulf of Mexico waters, reaching top winds of 140 mph before making landfall again.
Hurricane Ian tore into western Cuba on Tuesday as a major hurricane, with nothing to stop it from intensifying into a catastrophic Category 4 storm before it hits Florida on Wednesday.
Ian made landfall at 4:30 a.m. EDT Tuesday in Cuba's Pinar del Rio province, where officials set up 55 shelters, evacuated 50,000 people, rushed in emergency personnel and took steps to protect crops in Cuba's main tobacco-growing region.
The U.S. National Hurricane Center said "significant wind and storm surge impacts" were occurring Tuesday morning in western Cuba. Ian sustained top winds of 125 mph as it moved over the city of Pinar del Rio. As much as 14 feet of storm surge was predicted along Cuba's coast.
