Riding along with Miami Fire Rescue, getting closer look at Fort Myers
MIAMI - Miami's Florida Task Force Two was one of the first teams to have boots on the ground after Hurricane Ian ripped through southwest Florida.
They set up camp on fort Myers beach and immediately began assisting the community.
On Monday, they gave CBS 4 a tour of the hard-hit areas and gave us a glimpse into their search and rescue efforts.
When Florida Task Force Two arrived they said they accounted for about 750 people who remained on the island during the storm. Since then, only about 200 have left.
A big hurdle during search and recovery efforts is locating homes that may have drifted.
Captain Ignatius "Iggy" Carroll with the City of Miami Fire Rescue and Florida Task Force Two said, "We try to identify homes that may have been on one side of the street . You're trying to do a targeted search. Some people sheltered in place and we are trying to account for that person and sometimes you have to follow the debris pile."
Mayor of Fort Myers Beach Ray Murphy also spoke with CBS 4 about what's next he said, "I really haven't had time to sit down and really talk about it too much… But, it is devastating, it's devastating. But, there's also opportunities. We will build back, we will build back much better, much stronger, and be able to survive these sort of events."
