The results of Hurricane Ian have left Florida in ruin with the deaths of at least 109. 

Ever since the category 4 hurricane struck the state of Florida, the state has begun to rebuild. Although the reconstruction is underway, a majority of the residents have completely lost their homes. The buildings and homes that the residents knew are now either unrecognizable to them or completely destroyed. The streets are covered in pieces of lumber, roofing, and torn-up tree branches and trunks. 

“When you are walking around the ruins, it’s an apocalyptic scene,” local resident Veach said. 

One of the major issues with rebuilding after the storm is the cost for it. The total cost for the property damage is over $25 billion. There have been a lot of charities and donations set up to help support families, but they are only able to do so much. A great deal of supplies were needed in order to rebuild, and the costs for them have risen significantly. 

“After a major catastrophe, there is often a ‘demand surge,’” Cara Cuite and Rebecca Morss, CNN, said “which involves a temporary increase in the cost of reconstruction due to high demand of materials and labor.”

Both on the streets and in buildings that weren’t entirely destroyed, there is a severe amount of flooding. While some of the streets were completely flooded, many buildings have serious water damage due to rot. The results of the flooding is one of the main causes of the high cost of rebuilding like the results of previous hurricanes. 

“The most concerning factor coming out of the storm and all the losses is the lack of flood insurance, particularly in the Central Florida area,” the communications director of the Insurance Information Institute, Mark Friedlander said. 

Some buildings were completely demolished by the floods and winds, but they weren’t the only victims. The flooding also caused damage to many machines like cars. The damage to the cars that were still intact could be internal, so it is hard to tell which ones sustained damage. 

“Flood waters cause all sorts of hidden damage, which can surface months later,” Teresa Murray, a U.S. Public Interest Research Group said. 

During the hurricane, many different homes lost electricity, over 400,000 outages in multiple counties. Many people are looking for their family members that were lost in the storm. While some were either found or saved in the wreckage, not everyone survived the storm. 

“It’s unclear how many people remain unaccounted for after the storm.” Emergency Management Director Kevin Gunthrie said.