More than 1 million people in Florida were without power hours after Hurricane Ian made landfall on Wednesday.
As of 9:47 p.m. EST Wednesday, the Associated Press reports that 1.8 million people are without power
Lee County is reporting the most outages in the state, according to poweroutage.us. More than 300,000 customers are without power in the county, near where the hurricane made landfall.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said there are 42,000 utility workers ready to begin the restoration process. However, they won't start working until after the storm passes.
As of Wednesday afternoon, the hurricane had top sustained winds of 150 mph, with hurricane-force winds extending 45 miles from the center.
As many rely on generators for electricity, officials are warning the public about the dangers of generators.
The Consumer Protection Safety Commission said that 85% of carbon monoxide deaths are from portable generators.
The CSPC offers the following tips for staying safe while using generators:
- Never operate a portable generator inside a home, garage, basement, crawlspace or shed. Opening doors or windows will not provide enough ventilation to prevent the buildup of lethal levels of CO.
- Operate portable generators outside only, at least 20 feet away from the house, and direct the generator’s exhaust away from the home and any other buildings that someone could enter, while keeping windows and other openings closed in the path of the generator’s exhaust. Do not operate a generator on an outside porch or in a carport. They are too close to the home.
- Check that portable generators have been maintained properly, and read and follow the labels, instructions, and warnings on the generator and in the owner’s manual.
- Look for portable generators that have a CO shut-off safety feature, which is designed to shut the generator off automatically when high levels of CO are present around the generator. Some models with CO shut-off features also have reduced emissions. These models may be advertised as certified to the latest safety standards for portable generators–PGMA G300-2018 and UL 2201–which are estimated to reduce deaths from CO poisoning by 87% and 100%.
