Storm chaser Aaron Rigsby joined "Faulkner Focus" Friday to describe how Hurricane Ian brought massive storm surge to the Fort Myers, Florida area, where he said many people did not evacuate.
"Winds were sustained at least 120 to 130 miles an hour and began tearing pieces of the roof off of the place that we decided to take shelter in," said Rigsby.
Rigsby said it was "alarming" to see many Floridians riding out the storm despite the evacuation orders.
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"The number of cars that we still saw, people just sitting out on their front porch directly on the beachfront. And it was something that we hadn't quite seen before," said Rigsby.
"A lot of these other hurricanes that have been and, you know, kind of rural areas of Louisiana or Lake Charles, we saw these mass evacuations. We really didn't see that."
Rigsby described the concern of knowing people decided to stay behind as the dangerous storm rolled through, adding he expected to see far more traffic leaving the area.
"It just made us wonder how many people stayed behind. And when we started seeing the reports of the storm surge come in, those waves of 15 feet, it just sent a pit in our stomach because we had no idea how many people stayed behind"
Rescue personnel search a flooded trailer park after Hurricane Ian passed by the area Thursday, Sept. 29, 2022, in Fort Myers, Florida. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
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Rigsby detailed the storm surge that he recorded on camera.
"We had that about 13 feet in the air. We were on about a six-foot tall expedition parked about one foot above sea level. And my chase partner, Max Olson, who captured that video, is about six foot four and there are times in that video where waves are crashing a foot over that."
Storm chaser's camera captures storm surge in Fort Myers Beach, Florida during Hurricane Ian. (Fox News/Max Olson Chasing)
"I believe that that storm surge was at least 13 to 16 feet tall and in the worst hit areas," said Rigsby, noting that scientists and local officials will soon confirm the official level recorded.
Elizabeth Heckman is a digital production assistant with Fox News.
