A Bolton councillor has fled from a condo he was staying at in Florida as Hurricane Ian lands.
The major weather incident has prompted warnings of possibly dangerous storm surges along the heavily populated Gulf Coast of the United States.
Cllr Andy Morgan – who represents Heaton and Lostock - was on holiday on Sanibel Island when he was told to evacuate on Monday (September 27).
He has managed to make it to his friends' condo in Naples and "feels safe where he is, but conditions are deteriorating".
Cllr Morgan said: “All shops, businesses, government buildings, schools etcetera are all closed, and many businesses and homes are boarded up.
“We feel safe where we are, but conditions are deteriorating, and the next few hours are crucial. We sit and wait.
“The anticipation and waiting for Hurricane Ian to hit is immense.
“Power is starting to be a little erratic which means WiFi etc keeps dropping.”
Cllr Morgan says that a storm surge is expected to be between eight and 12 ft, "the highest in living memory".
The hurricane centre warned of catastrophic storm surges raising the water level as much as 12ft (3.6 metres) to 16ft (4.9 metres) above ground level for coastal areas straddling Punta Gorda and Fort Myers, which are between Naples and Sarasota.
Cllr Morgan also explained that when he went out for provisions he saw highways pooling water and cars aquaplaning.
Hurricane Ian has rapidly intensified as it nears landfall along Florida’s southwest coast, gaining top winds of 155mph, just shy of the most dangerous Category 5 status.
Damaging winds and rain lashed the state, and forecasters said the heavily populated Fort Myers area could be inundated by a storm surge of up to 18ft (5.5 metres).
US Air Force hurricane hunters confirmed Ian gained strength over warm Gulf of Mexico water after battering Cuba, bringing down the country’s electricity grid and leaving the entire island without power.
Ian was centred about 65 miles west-southwest of Naples at 7am local time, swirling towards the coast at 10mph.
More than 2.5 million people were under mandatory evacuation orders, but by law, no one could be forced to flee.
Florida residents rushed to board up their homes, stash precious belongings on upper floors and flee.
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