Charlie Whitehead leaves Emily Lane mobile home park to bring his neighbors Pat and Les Pickett to a shelter in Estero for the evening on Wednesday, October 5, 2022. It was the first time the Picketts were leaving their home since Hurricane Ian hit.
Coverage of the aftermath of Hurricane Ian on San Carlos Island, Florida and the Fort Myers region in October 2022. “Ian made landfall 20 miles from their mobile home community. Left with scraps and debris, these longtime neighbors wonder what’s next” (Erica Lee/CNN)
Charlie Whitehead, 64, tries to salvage photos from his home on San Carlos Island, Fort Myers Beach, Florida on Wednesday, October 5, 2022. Whitehead had been a resident since 1985 and worked as a journalist for the Naples Daily News close to 25 years.
Edith Lopez shows how high the water rose in her bedroom while covering her nose from the smell of mold during Hurricane Ian in the Whitewater Court neighborhood in Fort Myers Beach on Friday, October 7, 2022.
After the waters receded from flooding neighborhood streets, fish were left behind.
Debris in the San Carlos Island community of Emily Lane on Fort Myers Beach on Thursday, October 6, 2022.
Robert Heather, 73, lives at Sunnyland Trailer Park in in San Carlos Island, Fort Myers Beach. Heather lost everything during Hurricane Ian, including the car seen behind him. “I lost everything — no phone, no wallet, no ID’s,” he said.
Les Pickett, 84, gathers items from a bedroom before leaving for shelter in Estero on Wednesday, October 5, 2022. The Picketts were home when Hurricane Ian hit. Water rose to their chins and their furniture began to float around them. They slept in the guest bedroom without power after the hurricane.
The Picketts were home when Hurricane Ian hit. Water rose to their chins and their furniture began to float around them. Pat and Les decided to stay and try to clean up a week later on Wednesday, October 5, 2022.
Anthony Williams, 50, was born and raised in Fort Myers, Florida and lives in Lehigh Acres. Williams works on a shrimp boat based out of Fort Myers Beach, but lost his livelihood during Hurricane Ian. “I lost a lot of stuff. I’m alive. I’ve got breath of life,” Williams said. Williams was at the Chevron gas station in San Carlos Island, Fort Myers Beach checking on his friend who rode out the hurricane.
Lourdes Penagos, third from left, and Carmel Maignan, fourth from left, both with FEMA, talk to a group of residents at Sunnyland Trailer Park on San Carlos Island, Fort Myers Beach, Florida on Wednesday, October 5, 2022.
Bryan Corona, 9, holds his pet squirrel Alvin, next to Iker Corona, 5, who both survived Hurricane Ian in the neighborhood of Whitewater Court of Fort Myers Beach, Florida.
Anis Castillo, left, helps distribute ice to neighbors, including José Ramirez and Francisco Hernandes at Sunnyland Trailer Park in San Carlos Island, Fort Myers Beach on Tuesday, October 4. Castillo owns a business with her husband Joey Fernandez, down the street and efforted aid to her neighbors.
Bottles of water sits off of San Carlos Boulevard in Fort Myers, Florida on Wednesday, October 5, 2022.
Emergency aid and storage containers attached to helicopters constantly flew in the sky during the daytime.
Cole Mazza, 25, shows how high the water reached in his home in the Whitewater Court neighborhood before he decided to leave.
Temple Condon, a resident of Sunnyland Trailer Park in San Carlos Island, Fort Myers Beach, stands in front of her home that survived Hurricane Ian on Tuesday, October 4. Condon is still living there.
Dried mud and a coconut cracks from the heat of the sun.
Carlos Hernandes, 37, and Robert Heather, 73, both live at Sunnyland Trailer Park in San Carlos Island, Fort Myers Beach. Carlos helped save Robert after breaking the window to Robert’s apartment, seen between them, to pull him out from drowning in the waters flooding from Hurricane Ian.
Damage to a trailer park community on San Carlos Island, Fort Myers Beach is seen on Wednesday, October 5, 2022, a week after Hurricane Ian hit.
Miguel Romero says goodbye to his parents in the Linda Loma Road neighborhood of Iona on Saturday, October 8, 2022. Romero has been renting off Linda Loma Drive for 18 years. Him and his family were home when Hurricane Ian arrived. They climbed into the attic to get to safety from the rising floodwater.
Charlie Whitehead, 64, talks to various people in front of his home on San Carlos Island, Fort Myers Beach, Florida on Wednesday, October 5, 2022. Whitehead had been a resident since 1985 and worked as a journalist for the Naples Daily News close to 25 years.
Matanzas Pass Bridge, the bridge that connects to Fort Myers Beach, remained closed on Tuesday, October 4.
Pat Pickett, 83, greets her neighbor Kim Haefner in the San Carlos Island community on Fort Myers Beach on Wednesday, October 5, 2022.
Hurricane Ian Aftermath