Hurricane Ian is now a major storm and expected to strengthen to Category 4 as is heads for Florida from the Gulf of Mexico. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) has issued a tropical storm warning for several Florida counties, including Brevard and Indian River.
Sebastian, Micco, Fellsmere, and Vero Beach are currently under a tropical storm warning ahead of Ian’s Florida approach. As a result, we can expect a lot of rain and potential flooding in both Brevard County and Indian River County.
Rain clouds from Hurricane Ian are already making their way into Sebastian. At the same time, residents continue to make preparations by filling up for gas or buying last-minute storm necessities at Walmart, Publix, and Winn-Dixie. We can expect this rain to continue through Friday.
According to NHC, we can expect 6 to 10 inches of rain with tropical storm conditions with wind gusts less than 73 mph. The winds should arrive in Sebastian early Wednesday morning. Many boaters in Sebastian are now securing or moving their vessels in preparation for Ian.
Sebastian Mayor Jim Hill told Sebastian Daily that he doesn’t expect to see a significant impact from Hurricane Ian in our area but encouraged residents to be prepared in case the storm changes path.
“As it looks right now, it doesn’t look like it’s going to be a major event for the City of Sebastian, so everyone needs to stay calm but pay attention to what’s going on,” Hill said.
Ian is located 10 miles north of Cuba, moving to the northeast at 12 mph with maximum sustained winds of 125 mph. Winds between 11-129 are Category 3, but forecasters warn the hurricane is expected to reach Category 4 with winds at 140 mph before landfall on Florida’s west coast.
Residents in Micco, Sebastian, Fellsmere, and Vero Beach should finish their storm preparations today.
Evacuations are currently underway on Florida’s coast. Gov. Ron DeSantis warned that the entire Gulf Coast should be prepared for Hurricane Ian, saying threatening storm surge could affect most of the coast.
“Floridians up and down the Gulf Coast should feel the impacts of this,” DeSantis said. “This is a really, really big hurricane at this point.”
