Tonight, Hurricane Ian hits Tampa, Florida in full force.
Now people are fleeing in panic from what is expected to be the worst storm in 100 years.
People act as if the world is going to end, says Swedish golfer Jonty Marshall, 23, who fled to Daytona.
Hurricane Ian intensified after it swept through Cuba, leaving the entire country without electricity. Now approaching Florida The West Coast and tonight, Swedish time, is expected to hit the Tampa Bay area in full force.
The hurricane’s warning was upgraded earlier Wednesday to Category 4, meaning it is considered “extremely dangerous,” then Florida Governor Ron DeSantis issued a warning that it is approaching Category 5 – the most severe warning.
It is expected to be the worst storm in Tampa in 100 years.
“A storm of this magnitude will bring catastrophic flooding,” Governor Ron DeSantis told a news conference.
“looks unreal”
Now people are fleeing in panic.
One of them is Swedish golfer Jonti Marshall, 23, who teaches at the University of Tampa Athletics.
He is currently in Daytona, on the East Coast where things are a lot quieter.
– Yes, we escaped here on Monday and are now following the course of events from a distance. But it’s now really starting in Tampa, damn it. The water has kind of been pulled from the ground as if a tsunami was on its way. They say a hurricane is so strong that it can destroy homes and things, says Jonty.
He’s only lived in Florida for a few months, so this is his first hurricane.
It still feels surreal. It’s not like you’re right at home in Stockholm. People go to the stores and put in the basement like the world will end, you know what it’s like in the United States…
Do you know anyone still in Tampa?
Some, but most of them ran away.
How is the conversation between you and your friends?
– No, but you don’t really understand it yet. All we can do now is keep our fingers crossed. Jonty says the worst could have been if (the hurricane) knocked out the school.
Barnivik is safe
Many Swedish athletes, especially golfers, live in Florida.
Legendary Jesper Parnevik has lived there for nearly his entire adult life, and earlier on Wednesday his wife Mia posted a video on Instagram of the couple looking up at the darkened sky.
Sportbladet has been in contact with Jesper Barnivik who said they feel relatively calm being on the east coast of Florida.
“It’s windy here and there’s a hurricane warning, but nothing compared to the other coast of Florida!”Writes in a text message.
Will you stay or will you leave?
“We’re staying. Borrow a friend’s apartment for now.”
Lindberg Tranquility in Orlando
Top winner Pernilla Lindberg, just like Annika Sörenstam and Henrik Stenson, among others, lives in Orlando, which is centrally located in Florida, about 15 miles east of Tampa.
– Now it’s raining and windy here, but not that serious. We’ll see what happens in the next 24 hours, but we live far from the coast and experts say it will drop from a hurricane to a tropical storm before it reaches us, Lindbergh says.
– What people worry about most here in Central Florida is how much rain we’re getting. There has already been a lot of rain here in the last month, so the ground is saturated and there is a risk of flooding.