At least 21 people are dead, and thousands of people could be missing after Hurricane Ian battered Florida this week.

Up to 10,000 people may still be unaccounted for as well, according to theSouth Florida Sun Sentinel.

Hurricane Ian made landfall as an “extremely dangerous” Category 4 storm with sustained winds of 150 mph on Wednesday just after 3 p.m. local time, near Cayo Costa, Fla.,according to the National Hurricane Center.

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“We’ve never seen storm surge of this magnitude,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis told reporters Friday. “The amount of water that’s been rising, and will likely continue to rise today even as the storm is passing, is basically a 500-year flooding event.”

President Joe Biden said Ian “could be the deadliest hurricane in Florida’s history” during an address from FEMA headquarters on Thursday.

“The numbers we have are still unclear, but we’re hearing early reports of what may be substantial loss of life,” the president added. “We know many families are hurting. Many, many, are hurting today.”

Search and rescue operations began around 1 a.m. Thursday morning, according to apress releasefrom DeSantis' office.

By Thursday afternoon, more than 700 people had been rescued in both Charlotte and Lee Counties alone, per the governor’s office.

Paul Hennessy/Anadolu Agency via Getty

Orange County Fire rescue unit members work in a flooded neighborhood in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian on September 29, 2022 in Orlando, Florida. The storm has caused widespread power outages and flash flooding in Central Florida as it crossed through the state after making landfall in the Fort Myers area as a Category 4 hurricane.

However, the death toll is expected to rise in the coming days as search and rescue missions take place across the state.

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Initial reports suggest that at least two deaths have been reported in in Lee County, as well as two in Sarasota County and one in Volusia County, per theSentiel.

A 72-year-old man from Deltona died after going outside todrain his pool, the Volusia County Sheriff’s Department said in a news release on Thursday.

Members of the Florida National Guard look for stranded residents in a flooded neighborhood in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian on September 29, 2022 in Orlando, Florida.

During a Thursday appearance onGood Morning America, Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno said “fatalities are in the hundreds,” according to theFort Meyers News-PressandTallahassee Democrat.

He later clarified to CNN that the numbers were still “very preliminary,” according toThe New York Times.

Determining the official number of fatalities and missing people is a difficult task in wake of disasters as significant as Hurricane Ian.

“People die in disasters that have nothing to do with the disaster,” Guthrie said, per the outlet. “The medical examiner is the one that makes that determination.”

Fort Myers Beach after Hurricane Ian.Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu Agency via Getty

A general view from the site after Hurricane Ian left Florida on Thursday following making landfall as a devastating Category 4 hurricane, on September 29, 2022 in Florida, United States.

Various agencies are assisting with search and rescue missions, including the National Guard, the Coast Guard, the Missouri Task Force 1 Disaster Situational Assessment and Reconnaissance (DSAR) Team, and more.

source: people.com