Hurricane Ian: Death toll reaches 100 mark, maximum in Florida

The number of storm-related deaths has grown to at least 101 in the eight days since the storm made landfall in southwest Florida. 98 of the total deaths reportedly occurred in Florida

image source: Reuters

Tallahassee: The death toll from Hurricane Ian climbed into the triple digits on Thursday. The number of recorded storm-related deaths has risen to at least 101 in the eight days since the storm made landfall in southwest Florida. Of the total deaths, 98 were in Florida, according to reports from the Florida Medical Examiners Commission. Other storm deaths include five in North Carolina, three in Cuba and one in Virginia.

Ian made landfall in Florida's Gulf Coast on September 28, after hitting Cuba the previous day. Roaring northeast, the storm crossed Florida and headed into the Atlantic, then made another landfall in South Carolina before pushing into the mid-Atlantic states.

Ian is the second-deadliest storm to hit the mainland United States in the 21st century, behind Hurricane Katrina, which left about 1,800 people dead in 2005. The deadliest hurricane to ever hit the US was the Great Galveston Hurricane in 1900 that killed as many as 8,000 people.