Alert about possible encounters with animals in areas of Florida impacted by Ian

The Florida authorities have alerted the population and the volunteers who help in the recovery tasks after the passage of Hurricane Ian to remain vigilant due to the greater possibility of encounters with alligators, snakes and even bears.

“Big storms make wildlife more active. You are more likely to see alligators, snakes, and bears, so remember to be alert and give them space,” the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) said on its Facebook account.

Although the sighting of alligators in urban areas is not unusual in this southern state, officials from that state agency warned that encounters with these reptiles may be more frequent in areas flooded by Ian, which made landfall in this state as a category 4 hurricane.

Added in the same way as Encounters with bears may be more likely, who, curious about the debris, “can take advantage of the easy access to leftover food waiting to be collected by waste collection service officials.”

He reported that the increase in potential findings also occurs with another member of the typical fauna of Florida, such as snakes, although these are not poisonous.

FWC reminded the population not to try to rescue a wild animal “during or after a hurricane or tropical storm if that would place them in a potentially dangerous situation.”

Possible encounters with wild animals after the passage of a storm or hurricane have aroused popular curiosity , which in recent years has been fueled by the circulation on the Internet of videos about the alleged presence of animals, especially sharks, in urban areas, images that have later been verified as false.

The last case of this type or it is a suspected shark of little more than a meter swimming in the flooded backyard of a house in Fort Myers, in southwest Florida, the area of ​​​​greatest impact by the hurricane.

According to US media, the video, which accumulates millions of views on Twitter, was recorded by a real estate agent, although there is no consensus as to whether it is really a young shark or not.

Rescue and recovery efforts continue today in Florida, where Ian made landfall last Wednesday with maximum sustained winds of 240 km/h, and the dead are estimated at more than 50, according to local authorities.