Hurricane Ian downgraded to Category 1, More than 2 million Florida residents without power

Hurricane Ian, one of the most powerful storms ever recorded in the U.S., devastated much of southern and central Florida with tremendous flooding and catastrophic winds, causing leaders in other states in the storm’s projected path to issue emergency declarations.

Governors in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia are allocating all departments and resources to assist residents ahead of the major storm’s anticipated impact in their respective states.

On Tuesday, ahead of Ian’s initial landfall, Gov. Brian Kemp issued a state of emergency for all Georgia counties.

GEMA Director James C. Stallings said during a press conference on Tuesday that the declaration allows Georgia to “bring all state resources to bear to ensure a safe and quick recovery for all Georgia citizens,” Fox Atlanta reported.

On Wednesday afternoon, just moments after Hurricane Ian, then a Category 4, made landfall in southwest Florida, South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster declared a state of emergency.

The announcement was followed by North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper declaring a state of emergency, where he also called on North Carolinians to “stay aware, keep a close eye on the forecast and prepare their emergency supplies.”

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin declared a state of emergency Wednesday, although the storm is not expected to impact portions of Virginia until Friday, September 30.

“Hurricane Ian is a large, powerful storm, and current predictions indicate that it may impact parts of Virginia later this week into early next week,” Youngkin said in a statement. 

He added: “We want to ensure that our communities have the resources needed to respond to and recover from any potential effects from the storm. While we recognize that the storm track is still uncertain, I nevertheless encourage all Virginians and visitors to make a plan, have supplies on hand, and follow official sources for the latest forecast information and guidance. Suzanne and I will be praying for those in Florida in the path of the storm.” 

Hurricane Ian made landfall as the fifth-strongest hurricane to strike the U.S., when measured by wind speed.

Fox News’ Bradford Betz and The Associated Press contributed to this report.