Hurricane Ian: Matthew Cappucci shares his experience tracking the storm in Florida
ORLANDO - FOX 5's Matthew Cappucci said he knew what he was expecting when he traveled to Florida to track Hurricane Ian - but it wasn't until he and his crew encountered the backside of the eyewall that he felt the true ferociousness of the storm.
With winds gusting 100 to 110 mph and water rising all around them – two flat tires forced him and his crew to limp across a river and seek shelter in the parking garage of an apartment building.
"What struck me as very bizarre was the fact that it was the western eyewall that got all the worst conditions," Cappucci said adding that, ordinarily, the most intense conditions come along with the leading eyewall of the storm.
"Every time you think it's done, another gust comes and another guest comes. It was just a deafening roar for 12 hours," Cappucci said saying the sustained gusts went on for hours.
"And when the storm was over – the most surreal part was hearing that silence."