2 Hurricane Ian Deaths Confirmed In Sarasota County: Sheriff

SARASOTA COUNTY, FL — Two unincorporated Sarasota County residents who relied on oxygen machines died after they lost power when Hurricane Ian hit the area, according to the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office.

One individual, a 94-year-old man, lived in the Palmer Ranch area, Kaitlyn Perez, community affairs director for SCSO, told Patch. The other, an 80-year-old woman, lived in north Sarasota.

During a Friday morning news conference, Florida Division of Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie said the storm caused 21 deaths - one confirmed in Polk County, while 12 unconfirmed deaths were in Charlotte County and eight unconfirmed deaths in Collier County, the Orlando Sentinel reported.

• Stay up-to-date by viewing all Hurricane Ian coverage on Patch here.

But more storm-related deaths are expected in Lee County and other areas, along with people who died in vehicles in Lake and Putnam County and a Volusia County man who died when trying to drain his pool, Guthrie said.

Based on the number of 911 calls from the area, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Thursday the death toll in the Fort Myers area alone could be in the hundreds.

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