Hurricane Ian Tracker: Worst 'Yet To Come' For Tampa; 2M In Florida Without Power

Hurricane Ian knocked out power in Florida and left many trapped in flooded homes, but officials warned that the worst is yet to come for some areas.

Ian made landfall at around 3:05 p.m. Wednesday along the southwestern coast of Florida near Cayo Costa, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC).

Electricity is down for more than 2.1 million Florida homes and businesses as of writing, data provided by PowerOutage.us showed.

Major flooding was seen in Collier County, Sanibel and Fort Myers Beach, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said at a press conference Wednesday evening.

A coastal sheriff's office said it received many calls from people trapped in flooded homes, the Associated Pressreported.

People pleaded for rescue on social media sites, according to the outlet.

Ian has since weakened from a category 4 hurricane to a category 2, the NHC said.

However, DeSantis and other officials warned Wednesday evening that residents in central and northeast Florida could still see tornadoes, high winds and flash flooding as Ian moves inland, CBS News reported.

Tampa Mayor Jane Castor urged residents to shelter in place as she said Ian may continue to impact the metropolitan area.

"There has been somewhat of a lull especially since Hurricane Ian made landfall down in South Florida, so there may be the idea that we've been through the worst of it, it is yet to come for Tampa Bay so we're asking everyone to shelter in place," Castor was quoted as saying by CNN.

Ian is not expected to leave the Florida peninsula until Thursday.

More than 1,300 federal response workers in the state have been pre-positioned to support emergency response, the White House said in a statement on its website.

President Joe Biden's administration has also prepared 300 ambulances, 110,000 gallons of fuel and 18,000 pounds of propane for immediate deployment.

It was staging 3.7 million meals and 3.5 million liters of water in Alabama as well.

"We'll be there to help you clean up and rebuild, to help Florida get moving again. And we'll be there every step of the way. That's my absolute commitment to the people of the state of Florida," Biden was quoted as saying Wednesday.

Ian is the strongest hurricane to make landfall in Florida in terms of wind speed.

It is tied with 2004's Hurricane Charley as the fourth most powerful storm to ever hit the U.S.