Marblehead First Responders Aid In Hurricane Ian Florida Relief

MARBLEHEAD, MA — Two Marblehead emergency responders are in Florida as part of the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency's Task Force One response to the region devasted by Hurricane Ian.

Marblehead Fire Lt. Liam Gilliland and a Marblehead 911 emergency dispatcher were on their way to Fort Myers, Florida in the wake of the historic storm.

The dispatcher will be working in a command post handling coordination and logistics while Lt. Gilliland will be performing search and rescue/recovery operations.

"Given how many of Marblehead's residents spend so much time in Florida, their dispatch into the region is particularly poignant," the Marblehead Police Department said in a social media post. "It is unclear how long our friends and colleagues will be deployed to the south, but we are tremendously proud of them and wish them success and more importantly a safe return."

Line workers from Danvers and Peabody also recently headed to Florida to help with power restoration efforts.

Nearly one week after Hurricane Ian slammed into Florida as a powerful Category 4 hurricane, more than 100 people are dead as search and rescue and power restoration efforts continue in hard-hit parts of the state.

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

More than 1,900 people have been rescued statewide since Monday, though it's unclear how many people remain missing. Meanwhile, state officials are working on compiling a list of the missing, according to a CNN report, and more than 430,000 people are still without power Tuesday.

Ian knocked out power to nearly three million customers across Florida when it roared ashore Wednesday, bringing with it 150 mph winds and a devastating storm surge.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and
Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)