As Hurricane Ian made landfall as a Category 4 storm with winds of 150 mph on Florida’s west coast leaving more than 2.6 million people without power, locals found shelter at Chabad of Fort Myers.
By Anash.org reporter
Hurricane Ian made landfall as a Category 4 storm with winds of 150 mph on Florida’s west coast. As some 1.75 million people faced evacuation orders, torrential rains, flooding and record storm surges in Naples and Fort Myers left more than 2.6 million people without power across the state.
On Thursday morning, as Chabad Lubavitch of Southwest Florida was still without power due to the Hurricane, Rabbi Yitzchok Minkowicz read from the Torah with community members shining flashlights.
On Wednesday afternoon, Rabbi Minkowicz released a video update to the public.
“The wind is coming in strong, the rain is coming non-stop,” he said. “We are starting to see some serious damage to the Chabad Center due to the storm, he said, such as signs coming down and tiles which have fallen, as well as broken fences.”
Fortunately, Chabad’s elevation is pretty good so we have a lot of people hanging out at the Chabad House, Rabbi Minkowicz said.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Hurricane Ian’s impacts were historic, calling the storm a “500-year flood event” that will require rebuilding infrastructure to restore power.
Please help Chabad of Southwest Florida assist the community: Click here to donate now.
VIDEO: Hurricane Ian 5:45 P.M. Update:
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