fort myers beach is going to be closed basically.et some residents go back. >> yeah, we're heading back down there tomorrow and we just got word they will allow residents with their own boats to go out to sanibel island and say, look, be very careful. when we were there, with the cajun navy, there was a propane tank that had been thrown around and was just hissing, the gas, you could smell it in the air. a couple of house fires started that way. and but you can understand the pull, yo

i mean, the entire community at motor myers beach is on the ground. homes, you see a staircase to nowhere basically on every block. the homes have been tossed away by the sea, the wind. we saw a landundromat where the doors were blown off, we found washers and dryers blocks away. we saw homes on top of homes, home that have been on one side of the street, had been pushed by the sea, by the force of the water and the wind across to the other side of the street. it really looked like a lumber yard in some areas, as if the homes had never been built. they were just smashed and pieces of wood all over the place. there was one house where the neighbor's rooftop was on their rooftop. it had been moved over to their neighbor's home. there were cars upside down. it was really incredible. we talked to one woman named katherine who stayed in her home because she needed treatment of chemotherapy because she has cancer and she wanted to continue to have it here. so she rode out the storm, but she was rescued today and here's what she told us. >> the house next to

they are not able to be in insured. >> a lot more of that conversation with the folks on fort myers beach. we are gonna hear more from them later in the show. all right, presidents in fort myers and throughout southwestern florida are only starting to comprehend the devastation that behind the way could be in. thousands of people displaced. they are feeding those in need. that becomes a massive logistical undertaking. you just heard the people that i was talking to. they don't have any hot food. they have not had any awhile. they don't have any power to make of the. what i will talk to a group of volunteers. they are serving thousands of meals per day across the state. plus, back in 2005, he wrote that the relief efforts in the aftermath of hurricane katrina. there is no one better to lend the wealth of mitigating disaster knowledge than this man. he is retired lieutenant general. you are watching a special edition of velshi. we are live from fort myers, florida. residents are picking up the peach pieces after this colossal storm. >> it was scary. it was the worst feeling in the world. we

they wouldn't allow it. >> reporter: joe mcinerney lives on fort myers beach. how many people did you say? >> we pulled five out, we rescued five. >> reporter: mcinerney says he was staying with his fiancee liana and a dog end zone with enough lies last week. mcinerney says he wanted to stay and help. but too deputies from the sheriff's office told him if he stepped out of his home, they would pick him up and ship him out. he left on his own. >> i lost things, i lost people. we know people that have died but we haven't found them. >> reporter: mcinerney says he wants to go home. >> they keep saying we are in the way. we are not in the way. i think the fema response has been absolutely weak. they airdropped it the next day. >> reporter: you think fort myers beach will ever be what it was? >> no. >> reporter: decided what fort myers beach will be, rescue teams are evaluating what it is. >> can't have it interferes by a lot of people who are trying to come in and start the rebuilding process. this area is not ready for that yet. >> reporter: carol tells us their u

myers beach. >> reporter: frustration is mounting. gas, power and water remain in short supply. the entire city of fort myers beach has now been closed even to residents so crews can focus on searching for survivors. and it is not easy. there are buildings that have been tossed about, mountains of rubble. that is a fishing boat on top of an s.u.v. and perhaps somewhere in all of this mess, people. tonight, new images of the devastation near fort myers beach as search-and-rescue teams sift through the widespread destruction. going door to door looking for survivors, or those who perished in the storm. >> fire department! >> reporter: the city's mayor says perhaps more than two dozen remain unaccounted for. >> lifting up houses, lifting up rubble, listening, sending dogs in. so what they're trying to do is to find the survivors. >> reporter: shrimper logan lyons rode out the storm on his boat. the 65-year-old and his load of shrimp came out unscathed. the next time a hurricane's coming, would you think about riding it out on the boat? >

myers beach >> we have all seen ft.each, so you can imagine what pine island is looking at right now. >>> months before the fbi recovered those dozens of documents from mar-a-lago, donald trump told his lawyer to say all white house records requested by the national archives had been turned over. this is according to multiple sources >> they say that lawyer, alex cannon, refused to follow the order. with us now is senior legal analyst and former federal prosecutor elie hoe nig and olia troye. just tell them we gave what they asked for, knowing that was not true, is that alone evidence of a crime? . >> well, victor, it's crucial evidence of his knowledge and intent. that often is the most difficult thing for prosecutors to a approve. if he said, tell them we turned over everything, that is false. there was not a few but thousands of documents left at mar-a-lago. was that an honest mistake? the lawyer said, no, i can't go along with that. i can't sign onto that. lawyers are not allowed to lie. they are not allowed to sign

she was on that side of fort myers beach. in fact, an nbc crew was allowed to go in there earlier today and they confirmed that it's part of the search now triage to day they are still recovering bodies, unfortunately, in that area. one of the hardest hit areas fort myers beach. . >> talking about how folks are dealing with this the other de station's night, their homes, after this hurricane. >> people were affected in different ways. we are talking about ground zero, that part, a lot of structures were destroyed we've seen the area with the images. i'm standing in an area where you still see some of >> the most affected presidents the one who's home for destroyed who had neighbors found in -- after being evacuate from the bridge, this is the bridge, like i said, that connects to fort myers beach. we saw ministers go in and out all day long. we don't know who's in the ambulance on the way in and out. a lot of the people in this mandatory evacuation will be brought out, very emotional -- >> mass of people being dropped off by

of competition creation and the administrator under obama, another hour of velshi live from fort myers beach florida, starts now. s beach florida, starts now good morning to you, it is saturday, october 1st, 9 am in the east and 6 am in the west. i am coming to you live from fort myers beach, florida, one of the cities that was hardest hit by hurricane ian, hurricane ian made landfall on wednesday afternoon in florida as a category four hurricane. it was just a few miles shy, two miles per hour shy of being a category five storm, the likes of which have only been experienced four times in u.s. history. at this hour, more than 1.2 million people across florida are still without power, and as of late yesterday parts of the county where i am now, where ian did make landfall, did not have access to clean drinking water. in fact, much of where i am now has no access to power either. hard to know exactly how many people are displaced this time, officials are estimating it is in the thousands, possibly tens of thousands, at least 34 people have been confirmed dead so far, 12 of them here in lee cou

cbs' kris van cleave reports tonight from hard-hit fort myers beach. plus, cbs' manuel bojorquez travels by boat to isolated sanibel island. >> reporter: some of the scenes are almost apocalyptic. >> o'donnell: ukraine recaptures a key city. cbs' charlie d'agata reports tonight as russian troops respond with missile attacks. >> reporter: neighbors tell us a grandmother, a mother, and two small children were killed as they slept. >> o'donnell: in our exclusive interview with the head of the c.i.a., we ask how vladimir putin may react to the battlefield losses. you make it sound like he's even more dangerous. systemic abuse inside women's soccer. the explosive report detailing sexual misconduct, verbal and emotional abuse. and why kim kardashian was fined more than $1 million after promoting cryptocurrency. >> this is the "cbs evening news" with norah o'donnell, reporting from the nation's capital. >> o'donnell: good evening, and thank you for joining us as we start a new week together. woman, tonight, florida residents are reeling from the catastrophic

cbs new, cbs news, fort myers beach, flo. fort myers beach, florida. >> meanwhile, president biden is expected to be in florida tomorrow to survey survey the damage. yesterday, he yesterday, he toured the damaget behind by hurricane fiona in puerto rico. > >> california is now just $0.03 away from the highs set last su. last summer. here is a quick look at what we are paying right right here in the bay area. while prices were, short-term relief is on the way with gas refund checks sent to go out ths friday. a aaa spokesperson says his bike in gas prices due to oil refineries under maintenancs creating a supply shortage. >> refinery main is happening in in california, certainly is thet impact. maintenance is not permanent. it is temporary. >> gas prices will stay the same or get get worse over the next two weeks, according to experts. > >> tomorrow is california clean air day. to help cut emissions, the ferry will be offering free riders. it is one of several ags helping riders reduce pollution. pollution. > >> a santa rosa ci

kelly was also in southwest florida when the hurricane hit making a surprise visit to fort myers beach for summer wins. first birthday, just days prior, they say they originally planned to ride out the hurricane but are glad they made a last-minute decision to evacuate. the beach doesn't feel real. really? it just it feels like i'm here visiting my >> and then i'll go in and out but we where are we going next? it's a question. many residents are now asking themselves. >> kerry says their family was grandfathered into the area in the home. didn't have insurance. her sister kelly launched a gofundme page to assist with living expenses as kerry searches for a new place to call home with her baby. >> every morning i would step on that with my dog and my my child. and i would just look and see and ocean the golf and sand and the like. how that this is never going to get you know, how did i get so lucky? of that? little boys. but then it's like. when will i get back to what you get? >> i don't think harry could have said it better. you know, fort myers beach really is a special place to so m

who rode out the storm grateful for being transported. >> our eoc has made a decision with fort myers beach to close the beach to residents. >> reporter: officials deciding to close the island to search and rescue operations only. lee county officials have been criticized for issuing the first mandatory evacuations for only a day before landfall. >> i don't think it would have made a difference because we start pushing hurricane awareness in june. until people learn to follow the advisory, to plain not wait until it's too late, that's what will save lives. >> reporter: for fort myers resident connie miller, she said she realized she needed to get out when it was too late. hotels were already booked as she feared getting stuck on the roads. >> god kept us together and gave us safety. >> reporter: and officials are standing by their decision. >> i am confident that our county manager, our leaders, our governor, all of us in law enforcement, that we got that message out at the right time. >> reporter: for many, coming back to a life here still very uncertain. >> i'm getting tired. it's time to

sanibel and still in the fort myers beach area. g to talk about a lot, just north of fort myers kind of hit really hard. a lot of people still stuck in their homes and are starting to run out of food. a lot of people are hunkered down, only having maybe two or three days at the most of food and water. after that they don't expect it but we are trying to get as many supplies as we can out there to the field. those folks will be stopped for a while. >> all right, what you guys need as you're looking ahead to the obstacles that lie ahead? is that the 500 or so tickets outstanding right now. essentially rescues right? they expect to get all of those? go ahead, what did you say? >> rescues and extractions, the differences that rescue when a threat to life is emanated, extraction means we are moving forward with the save ground but not necessarily safe ground. >> how do you decide who gets extracted first? do you have a priority list as those more vulnerable than others? >> yes a lot of times we don't get a lot of intel about who is in th

kelly was also in southwest florida when the hurricane hit making a surprise visit to fort myers beach for summer wins. first birthday, just days prior, they say they originally planned to ride out the hurricane but are glad they made a last-minute decision to evacuate. the beach doesn't feel we'll really just it feels like i'm here visiting my sister. >> and then i'll go in and out of but we where are we going next? it's a question. many residents are now asking themselves. >> kerry says their family was grandfathered into the area in the home. didn't have insurance. >> her sister kelly launched a gofundme page to assist with living expenses as kerry searches for a new place to call home with her baby. >> every morning i would step on that with my dog and my my child. and i would just look and see and ocean golf and sand and the like. how did it? this is never going to get all you know, how did i get so lucky? of that? little boys. but then it's like. and now, yeah, when will i get back to what you get? >> well, as we continue to talk about hurricane in, i mean, really, you're in that

fort myers beach really is a special place to so many people, including myself. i lived there before moving to the city and many of my friends and former co-workers are still there despite what's happened. they say they've seen some of the best in people as the community has come together to rebuild. may take a while, but many of us hope to see fort myers beach restored to the vibrant town that so many people knew and loved. i'm taylor bisacky reporting back to you. >> and you didn't you probably heard them today. if you're in the city, the blue angels air back in the bay area, skies today, they did some practice maneuvers for their big air show that starts tomorrow. the blue blue angels are saying that you'll probably see. a little different show this year. for folks he's seen the show before, which will see a little new twist on some of the allman everson maybe a couple new, a new maneuvers and of themself bubble for the c one 30's. well, as the f eighteens, you know, we have a chance to come out here. >> every fleet week into a prison. our service over 100,000

fort myers beach that morning started encouraging its residents to get out.nday night, the town posted on its social media, the risk was so great, people needed to evacuate, even though lee county wouldn't make an evacuation decision until tuesday morning. when lee county finally did, it was less than 24 hours before ian's arrival. norah. >> o'donnell: not a lot of time for people to get ready. kris van cleave, thank you. well, one of the hardest hit areas was sanibel island, where tonight officials are urgently trying to evacuate any remaining residents. the mayor has called sanibel "uninhabitable" after hurricane ian tore through the island. cbs' manuel bojorquez saw the devastation up close. good evening, manuel. >> reporter: good evening, norah. some island communities remain accessible only by air or by boat. that's how we were able to see today firsthand the devastation over on sanibel island, where the vast majority of its 6,500 year-round residents did evacuate ahead of the storm. arriving by boat, the damage soon becomes clear. but it's by air that y

. >> nbc correspondent guad venegas is in fort myers beach, florida.you are in what is perhaps the most devastated area of florida, fort myers beach. i know you have spoken to survivors, including a man who braved the storm from inside a sailboat. tell us about that. >> juliÁn, as they are working with the power from what you are talking about, we're hearing stories from survivors. it's been tragic what has happened here, but some people like this men are focusing on the positive, which is that he survived a storm like this in his sailboat. not far from where we have been located all day, actually, right behind this building, there is a giant sailboat on the driveway. this man says that this marina that is to my left was full of votes before the storm. a lot of people did not expect the storm to be so strong, so that's why they stayed. when the storm began and as search also began to bring them at a higher level, he says some of those booths past him, and he saw the boats being washed onto the other side of the street. in fact, many of them are in fron

jessica is joining us now from fort myers beach.nd imagination. tell us what it was for you to return home, find your house just in ashes but then also to find one thing that was actually hopeful. >> yes. i -- we had arrived on the island the morning after and walked about three miles through what looked like an apocalyptic dis disaster. cars overturned, people's lives, pots, pans, clothing, strewn throughout the streets. once we made it back through the house, both streets leading to my house were blocked by people's houses that had left their foundation. i climbed over a fence and crawled over building debris and walked through mud. when i got to my house, it was still burning. when i came back, and the fire had settled, there was one thing that was left after i searched through the ashes. and it was a candlestick that my great grandmother had carried over from poland in her pocket when she came to ellis island. it was the simplest most prized possession that i had, and it gave me a sense of hope, especially today being yom ki kip

you are in fort myers beach just a week before. are actually at our wedding venue which is a big shipyard right on the water. they are putting in floors and painting walls. days later, the hurricane comes in and we get picture of our wedding venue being demolished. >> i know you wanted to go and take a look at things as we look at you during happier times before the storm actually came. why did you decide to do this instead to rally the nashville troops to go ahead and put together this benefit concert. >> my first inkling was how do we get there and help? they canceled our flights and shutdown the airport and shut down their bridge to the beach. my second thought was i have been put on benefits. i lost my mom. i helped raise $50 million to fight against alzheimer's. what is the next best thing that we can do? rally the troops and bring together some artists that are really good friends of ours and help raise some money and write them a big check. in -- we started playing this concert actually on the day that we were supposed to ge

sam brock is there tonight. >> reporter: tonight a gut-wrenching look at fort myers beach from the ground level for the first time since hurricane ian made landfall >> no structure on this island has gone unscathed. >> reporter: our cameras the first to tour what's now just frames of homes. unrecognizable lots with nothing left except air-conditioning units, toilets, and rubble the international association of firefighters president edward kelly leading us through the wreckage >> this island was devastated >> reporter: he says there are ten search and rescue units on the ground, comprised of hundreds of firefighters >> search and rescue [ knocking ] >> reporter: searching 3,500 properties just in fort myers beach. how long do you think that's going to go on for? >> it's a common question and a lot of people want to know a time frame. and unfortunately time frames are very dynamic. they're fluid. >> reporter: as you look at the thousands of properties on fort myers island, they basically run the gamut from homes that look like they're pretty much still standing to piles of rubble that have

myers beach. we went on a boat ride with the cajun navy and other volunteer rescuers across the area. and matt lachey in the coastal area is where most of the deaths occurred. >> what is going on over here? >> a lot of restaurants, into the lot of homes. pretty much all restaurants. theme that do shrimping, fishing. there was buildings the whole way. and they are just gone. >> you heard their stories that there are bodies in some of the canals and stuff? >> yeah, like up to the second story window, the water was still going. >> and that is the road right there. >> yeah. >> and it is gone. >> yeah. >> this area is pretty typical of the destruction around here. there is a bridge intact just about a block from here. maybe a quarter of a mile, nothing more than that, but the road leading to that bridge is completely washed out. so the island that is on the other side of that bridge is cut off right now. >> the people texted me hey, your house is gone. and i came out here yesterday, they let me on. he

myers beach, getting in and out of northern lee county is quite difficult. where we spent the day in northern ft. myers, there are only two major roads going north and south. we're talking about i-75 and u.s. 41. the folks that we talked to say look, we would have welcomed a little bit more time, but the last thing they felt folks wanted to do was possibly sit in traffic on either of these two roads considering that northern cities like tampa were evacuating their residents. >> and carlos, that boat behind you, is that just a boat that was thrown into somebody's front yard? >> reporter: that's right. we're in downtown ft. myers in what has become a bit of a yard for all of these boats out here. all of these washed up from a marina not too far from the northern side of the river. and you can see how much of the litter is out here. we've seen a couple crews taking a look, what you would imagine what would be the work, the effort that is about to get under way, figuring out who these boats belong to and exactly where they will go. >> all right. carlos suarez, th

myers beach as the storm was still pounding this community. >> it was a good day. the i mean, again, it's like, you know, you don't want to leave anybody behind. that's that we're here for. and on the other hand, we didn't find anybody. that's a good thing. >> a team of 80 from this task force has been busy crisscrossing a seven mile stretch on the beach working 24/7 going house-to-house in search of survivors. >> we have a the lot of residents that are still sheltered in place and need information and need help. just getting out or just where to get water, ice, food, and just even giving that information to them is a huge help for them. >> reporter: it's no easy task given the scene here, homes crumbled, smashed, and stacked on top of others. businesses blown to pieces. this building used to be over there as kro the street. it was moved by the sheer power of wind and water. >> we had emergencies we didn't respond to. when he two people that fwheent cardiac arrest, stopped breathing and the search and rescue personnel ended up performing cpr. able to get a pulse ba

tonight, ali velshi reports live from fort myers beach, florida. good evening, ali, we are looking for to this. >> good evening to the rest of you, as alex said i am here tonight in fort myers beach in florida, southwest coast, red where hurricane ian made landfall on wednesday afternoon. i want to implore you tonight to listen closely. this is not a weather story, it's not even a natural disaster story, it's a human disaster story. you see in the video, the weather, the wind the flooding, you've seen the aftermath, the broken things, the houses, the buildings, the bridges, the boats, destroyed. but these images don't show you the lives that are broken. people on the margins whose homes, whose jobs, even their own bodies and their health are now precarious. people who don't have the insurance or the resources to rebuild. my team down here and i went for a drive here not far from where we discovered dozens of people at a shrimping dock for whom that is the situation tonight. no one has reached them and it is not clear if anyone has tried, but i saw

and joining me now is the mayor of fort myers beach. thanks for being with us.a says it's on the edge of the survival window to find folks that still may be trapped. what is going on on the ground and what is your expectation of who might still be out there? >> hi, katy. you're right. the fema folks, search and rescue teams are out there. they're getting close to wrapping it up here. i'd say they have a few more days left to go. but you know, at this point, while still hopeful to finding survivors, that window is rapidly narrowing i would say. >> do you have a number of how many people might still be missing? >> i don't have that exact number right off the top of my head here. it's, you know, anecdotally what i'm hearing telling me, this and that, it might be, i don't know. i wouldn't even venture a guess. it might be 20, 30 people. might not be that high either. >> let's hope it's not that high. we're seeing some of the work that's being done to clear the rubble. we were just showing it a second ago. what's your expectation for how long this clean up is going t

when you look at fort myers beach, it's a little hard because again, it's these horrific images of what happened to mexico beach. our office leads the urban search and rescue teams, and these heroes, they left for miami at 2:00 in the morning the night of the storm, and they've braved hurricane-force winds. they are going through home to home and i'm sitting there, talking to one of the task force leaders, i'm saying, you know, how is your team handling it? they are so upbeat, and i'm thinking the opposite. they said jimmy, we are saving lives. he says, you have no idea how we feed off of that. when you save lives, we pull people out of the rubble, and they are going into cardiac arrest, we save their life, we get them to safety. so, we are seeing in that case some of the best of humanity. >> jimmy, jeez, you're gonna bring tears to my eyes to. let me just say, you are the man for this job. >> you got me! >> you are the guy for this job. you have so much expertise and you are coupling it with your heart. that is what is going to get this job done. so, bless you for the work you are doin

myers beach. so that could be an indication that they're running into more s survivors in trouble. and this gentleman, doug mcgill, he was in the sailboat in the middle of the hurricane and as the storm surge was going through, this area he spotted three people that were clinging to the roof of this two-story structure and he pulled those people into his sailboat and then the storm surge plopped the sailboat down in the middle of the road where we are standing right now and here is more of what hes had to say. >> we were over 12 to 14 foot of water above where we are standing right now at that time. >> and it was over the building and it was a two-story building. >> it was a two-story building. >> it is gone now. my anchor chain went over the top of the corner of it. it was that high. >> and can you believe that all of are you still standing here alive right now. >> their still thanking me. being in the right spot and the right time. i lost my boat and everything i had but i saved three guys and i

kaylee lane rode out the storm on fort myers beach. she and her family now forced to say goodbye to their home. >> light into a suitcase. >> just a horrible situation down there in southwest florida. that was brooke shaffer reporting for us tonight. all right here locally, we're going to be taking a live look now across the bay area. this is from our mount tam cam. it's kind of hard to tell. >> we're actually looking at anything other than 5 bright word is fog and cloud in here with socked in with the fog right now. rodriguez joining us now to look at the forecast in just how long this fog going to be hanging around recent. yeah, definitely through sunday fog tobar certainly living up to its name for the first weekend. let's take a look, though, at radar for. >> because we are tracking remnants of what was once hurricane ian now tropical storm ian making its way throughout parts of the east coast, specifically over charleston and pittsburgh. widespread light showers right now and even some pockets of moderate rain so far. pittsburgh, y

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her dogs are searching for human remains here on fort myers beach. they've worked dozens of missions since first arriving at fort myers beach as the storm was still pounding this community. >> it was a good day. again, you don't want to leave anybody behind. that is what we're here for. but then on the other hand, when you find anybody, that is -- it's a good thing. >> reporter: a team of 80 from this task force has been busy crisscrossing a seven mile stretch on the beach working 24/7, going house-to-house in search of survivors. >> we found some sheltering in place that needed some info and giving water and ice and food and that information is a huge help for them. >> reporter: and it is no easy task. homes crumbled and smashed and stacked on top of others. businesses blown to pieces. >> so i'm going to take you back over there. >> reporter: this building used to be over there across the street. it was moved by the sheer power of the wind and water. >> we had about 60 medical calls, medical emergencies that we responded to with two people who actua

back to you guys. >> bret: nate foy on fort myers beach, thanks very much. checking in throughout the hour. sandra. >> sandra: bret, we'll continue to monitor the president's tour there as he will get an aerial view, obviously. he's set to receive a briefing a short time from now. he'll also be meeting with families on the ground. we will continue to cover this. >> diversity inclusion official at the pentagon under fire for not being very inclusive, and republicans want to know will the pentagon give her a pass? >> plus the fbi releasing brand-new crime stats. the biggest numbers are not even in the mix. raphael mangual will be here to explain. terans the va cash out loan with no upfront costs for an appraisal or termite inspection. no upfront costs at all. let us get your family security of cash in the bank. i brought in ensure max protein with 30 grams of protein. those who tried me felt more energy in just two weeks. uhh - here, i'll take that woo hoo ensure max protein, with 30 grams of protein, 1 gram of sugar and now in two new flavors (♪ ♪) research s

the cajun navy, a volunteer group, came to the rescue of a woman in fort myers beach who says she stood on her bed for hours as water rushed into her home. listen as she is on the phone with a loved one. >> i'm up to my neck in water. >> okay. all right. >> i am so cold. >> hopi, i'm losing you, i can't hear you. >> i love you. >> i love you. >> wow, just the heartbreak and sheer terror there. ian is tracking north as a post-tropical cyclone. even though it's been downgraded officials warn it still threatens the area with heavy rain, wind and floods. in south carolina the flooded homes and vehicles along the shoreline. high winds pushing historic storm surge even higher. two piers, including this one in north myrtle beach, partially collapsed and just washed away into the waters there. officials are now warning residents to avoid leaving their homes and to steer clear of floodwaters that could pose hidden dangers. >> the obvious one of the water itself can isolate people, can drown people, and can also hide downed power lines, obstacles in the water, contaminants in the water. so the wa

if you haven't seen any pictures of fort myers beach, this is why.florida that's supposed to give us access when there's a state of emergency. but you got to feel for the sheriff's deputies just trying to manage the crowds that are piling in. you've got journalists, of course, you've got first responders, you have residents who are just curious who are coming by. and that's creating this huge pileup. but this is what i wanted to show you, this is across san carlos boulevard. just get a road of this, just wanton, indiscriminate destruction. i think about how a family saves up their whole life to buy a boat. or if you're a fisherman, you dream of being a captain one day and now perilous that is even in a good year sometimes. but now what this will do to the maritime businesses around here. the insurance, the marine insurance companies that will have to deal with the aftermath of this. and this is what i really wanted to show you, guys. look at this. i will always represent the sight of captain greg's boat "the cracker jack" now parked on top of this ac

where we are right now right off fort myers beach, this would have been a restaurant, a greek restaurantty. there's a good line of shops, of dancing, music, food, everything to enjoy all along fort myers beach, but you can see just what has been left behind after hurricane ian ripping out everything and, unfortunately, this one restaurant, was the livelihood of three families coming together, large greek family. they poured in all of their money taking mortgages out on their own homes just to fund this dream, their american dream. take a listen to one of the owners as she talks about what happened to her. we met up with her outside of a fema assistance office and fema wasn't able to give her much help. take a listen . >> we have mortgages. we have a mortgage we need to return. we have no way to return it from. fema doesn't offer businesses anything and what the department of business is offering are just loans. on top of the loans we have, on top of the debt, we have no way to deal with that. we have to take more loans. i don't know how we're getting out of it. that's the situation small

we were driving around fort myers beach here.e flooded communities, the flattened communities, the boats in treeses, of course. and we happened of what used to be a marina over here. this was a marina building behind me. it ended up out to sea, pulled by the storm. and this giant boat here took the other route, that was in the water, ended up on dry land. we poke to the owner of that boat who rode that storm out on the boat, and here's what he told us. have you ever seen a storm like this? >> no, not this big. seen hurricanes but nothing like this. >> reporter: when hurricane ian hit fort myers beach, the boat captain was in for the ride of his life. >> it was surreal, very surreal. >> reporter: mike had decided to ride out the storm at this boat docked. it's made of steel and has a generator, so he thought it would be safer than home. mike showed me video of what he saw as the hurricane gained strength. >> here's the one you'll see the building collapsed over there. you'll get to see it in a minute. you can see we're running the

this is footage from fort myers beach where one woman's struggle to survive was captured in a phone call. >> i am up to my neck in water. >> okay. all right. >> i am so cold. >> i'm losing you. i can't hear you. >> i love you. >> i love you. >> well, thankfully, the woman you heard there was later rescued. so far the coast guard said it has saved more than 275 people in florida. and the u.s. president is offering more help. >> i've directed that every possible action be taken to save lives and get help to survivors. every single minute counts. it's not just a crisis for florida. this is an american crisis. my message to the people of south carolina is simple. please listen to all the warnings and directions from local officials and follow their instructions. >> well, right now, about 2 million customers in four states are without power. in florida, some areas are starting to go restore electricity. but the press has been challenging. >> i would say that the biggest challenge of power restoration will be in those areas that bore the brunt of that category 4, almost category 5 impact where

>> i was down at the president's press conference at fort myers beach this afternoon.le for the beach to recover. >> neil: you know i was thinking fort myers and you would know this better than i would, that was the draw across the country. fort myers the biggest boom town in the country. obviously, there is a world of hurt there. and hoping to build up again, but how do you see it going the rest of the year? and then into next year? >> well, i think we are very resilient as a community. for example, pizza place right in the heart of downtown got flooded. as soon as the storm was over comically the owner was cleaning up and opened up on thursday and have a line around the block gig people pizza peer that is what we are seeing, people are clearing out the flooded store space, cleaning up their homes, and they are moving forward. i guess the best way i heard it is, i'll hurricane gave us a good punch, he did not knock us out. >> dome xp kit don't like >> neil: what makes florida tech in the eyes of the world but space excellence going on 150 miles in where you, if that w

this is fort myers beach today the scale of destruction is staggering a popular beach town turned into a wasteland. homes and buildings gone at least 21 people now confirmed dead as of late today across the state. that number expected to rise more than 1.5 million floridians still have no power. this is video of people stepping up and helping firefighters pull a man out of a collapsed home in fort myers beach the area known as times square was a fixture on that beach. the before on the left here, a place that was home to live music, shops and restaurants, the after on the right wiped off the face of the earth. the fort myers beach pier obliterated. and here's the before and after in an area around a well-known resort popular with spring breakers it is the blue building on the left there it is standing but nearly everything around it leveled there have been more than 700 rescues and they're ongoing now. the hurricane ravaged island of sanibel cut off. the only way to reach survivors is by boat or helicopter this is coast guard aircrew rescuing people along with their cats from a flooded

whether it be on fort myers beach like you said a lot of the island does not exist anymore, homes have destroyed for a downtown fort myers at centennial park where a memorial is growing unfortunately for all the people who died during hurricane ian. i guess my per photographer, nick to show you this memorial i counted 22 pictures with names, each one has a corresponding cross. you see people here in fort myers coming and taking videos paying their respects, flowers and candles at the base of this but you cannot see it but at the end there are some paintbrushes and pieces of wood and brick were people can write their own messages. some of these messages are for individuals. others are for southwest florida. now, i mention unfortunately the number of victims is growing. we are seeing that especially in fort myers beach to take a look at this video the florida task force to rescue team is using dogs, drones and boats to scour the island. you mentioned residents can access part of the island for that the north area fort myers beach for the southern part still blocked off as crews continued

msnbc news reporter joining us from fort myers beach. we begin with you, liz. let's get the latest on the rescue recovery efforts what are you seeing and what are the numbers? >> alex, crews are working around the clock, still so many unaccounted for and in the county where we are, one of the hardest hit, you can see behind me the demolition crew that already came in from miami. we are picking up all of rubble and starting to go through it. there is a building right now where we are standing up we will cross the street. it is not to go through, here. access is another big challenge as you mentioned. some only able to get access through topper or about. the only passage in sanibel island is completely destroyed. we are talking a cruise. we were there when some folks were coming into the island after being isolated in their home today. let's listen. we haven't had much water. >> we were trying to get by. we had a cover couple buckets of water. it was running on and off. >> every time it turns on we turn and fill up all of the buckets and topped with water. my mom

this morning, fort myers beach remains closed.rews are searching for survivors, working around the clock. 400,000 people there remain without electricity. and an official warns it may be weeks or months for some to get it back on. >>> well, tomorrow, president biden fresh off the tour of hurricane-ravaged puerto rico is set to visit florida. let's begin in florida with anchor and fellow correspondent boris sanchez. boris, good morning. thank you for being with us. that is a really significant jump in the death toll from when we spoke to you yesterday morning. at the same time, officials haven't given up hope that there are still some survivors, right? >> that's right, poppy. obviously, this is a heart-wrenching process for residents, because so much was lost here in southwest florida. you noted that fort myers beach was closed off even to residents. we spoke with the sheriff of lee county yesterday. and he explained that essentially, it's because the search and rescue effort is transitioning into search and recovery. and as they s

. >> our perry russom with search teams on fort myers beach. and valerie castro with veterans, mobilized to help clear their homes and start to recover. >>> october surprise herschel walker, pro-life, no exceptions candidate for senate in georgia accused of paying for an ex-girlfriend's abortion. >> it is a flat-out lie. >> walker's denials, the evidence, and his adult son's explosive allegations of abuse. >> don't lie on the lives you've destroyed and act like you're some moral family man. >> the fallout in the crucial swing state. >>> shock reversal elon musk now says he wants to buy twitter at his original offer. and now twitter reports it will close the deal >> as soon as next week, he could own twitter. >>> former president trump's legal hail mary in the fight over documents seized from mar-a-lago >>> the california family kidnapped at gunpoint, and the hunt for the suspect >>> and -- ♪ i was born a coal miner's daughter ♪ >> remembering the queen of country, loretta lynn. >> live from cnbc, the facts, the truth, the news with shepard smit

now, fort myers beach is one of the places that was hit the hardest.mages we have seen on television, aerial images of before and after, that is fort myers beach. a lot of structures were destroyed. others are still standing. after the storm, some people chose to remain and the days after the storm, things got worse and worse. as of yesterday afternoon, authorities said there was a new mandatory evacuation for everyone in that area. as they went building to building, trying to find survivors people who needed help, they have also been evacuating many people who have remained for a few days. for some of us who have remained on the other side of the bridge, there is essentially a bridge that connects the area we are into the island where a lot of these residents are being evacuated. we're trying to understand what is happening on that island. most of the media has been kept outside. some have been able to enter, escorted by authorities. we spoke to an evacuated woman today. this is what she had to say. >> these last three days, what has it been like? >>

nbc's -- is there for us and fort myers, beach. good to talk to you once again.just about what you have been seeing there. what our search and rescue crews telling you about their experience so far? >> when you talk about structures, you can see the structures behind me. this is the entrance to fort myers, beach. it goes to the island. the large part of the beach. look at these mobile homes, many of them destroyed. we have been told that on the island, they are calling it ground zero. this is the area where, unfortunately, they have been pulling out bodies of people who died in the storm. we have been seeing emergency vehicles exit throughout the day and over on the other side, there is a bus waiting and these are the vehicles that are being used to help evacuate a lot of the people that were on the island during the storm and that remain. we are having conversations with some of them. just moments ago i spoke with a woman who said, we survived the storm there. we had some supplies we decided to stay another day. but then, it just became very difficult to survive

fox news rebecca castor joins us now live from fort myers beach and rebecca. those rescue operations going tonight? well julie, this is as close as we can get to the beach at this point. as the access is closed off, they're only letting some local residents get by if they have a very important reason to be on the island, but the priority out here is still search and rescue and that is still five days after the storm came through here, and now we know the storm is to blame for killing about 100 people so far , but locals here fear that number is going to climb much higher. you're expecting the worst, but it you can't believe it's this bad. i mean, it's there's always have left. i mean, we cried heartbreaking weekend for those returning to fort myers beach for the first time since hurricane ian left its mark driving through town. it's complete devastation you see homes ripped to pieces. few walls still standing. look at this. this is like a bomb went off. looks like our neighbors building crashing ours. that's the green building. so i'm sure it's just a domino ef

cbs' manuel bojorquez will start us off from fort myers beach.evening, manuel. >> reporter: good evening, norah. president biden announced at fema will extend full reimbursement for debris removal for an additional 30 days. that's important in places like fort myers beach, where we're not just talking about what the storm piled up, but also the ruined items that people continue to pull from their homes. a week after hurricane ian left parts of southwest florida in ruins, president biden toured the damage by air, calling it historic, and promised long-term federal support. >> i want the people of florida to know, you have my commitment and america's commitment that we're not going to leave. >> reporter: the president was briefed by governor ron desantis, who announced a road to isolated pine island had been repaired. >> we said we can restore and provide a temporary bridge, so we did that, and that opened today. so, pine island is now restored to the mainland. >> reporter: also today, anxious residents of nearby sanibel island were allowed back fo

myers beach, mike was in for the ride of his life. >> very surreal. >> reporter: mike had decided to ride out the storm on his boat docked at this ft. myers beach marina, it is made of steel and has a generator so thought it would be safer than home. >> here is the one, you will see the building that collapsed over there. you can see him running the engines, holding the boats in place. and there is the building. >> reporter: oh, wow, it is right in the water. he had tied the boat he was on to another large boat he owned, both weigh about 50 tons, but even that was no match for hurricane ian. at about 3:00 a.m., all of a sudden mike was lifted up by the force of the water and the with indep wind. >> we didn't get dragged around until the very end. r >> reporter: what was that feeling like? >> it was out of our control, so we were happy we were blown inland because we knew we'd wind up over land, not out in the water sinking, be in real danger. you couldn't see anything. wind was howling. we knew we were in the parking lot. >> reporter: in the end after a wild 15 hours, mike and his bo

cnn's bill is in fort myers, and nick is in myrtle beach, south carolina. ort myers, it's been unimaginable to see. what are you seeing on the ground? >> reporter: well, we're seeing the obvious stuff everywhere here. this is the fort myers yacht base in which a big huge boats just came loose and pin balled around here, shoved them up against the bridge, so there's those symbols, and then as you walk around through the debris, you get reminders that these represent human lives. there are families that lost everything in some cases. so it makes you wonder who did this belong to? was this a grand parent who lived on one of these boats, so it's really something. we went out this morning, we tried to get out to fort myers beach which we heard had been wiped out, 90% of that community we heard reports that it was gone. they still hadn't opened it up. the sheriff's department was sort of turning everybody away. just where we were standing between here and there, here's a little sample of what you see just driving down the road after hur cain ian. these are shore b