Puerto Ricans flock to Central Florida in aftermath of Hurricane Fiona
ORLANDO, Fla. - More people are escaping the devastation in Puerto Rico and looking for help in Central Florida.
FOX 35 was at Orlando International Airport as flights landed from San Juan this morning, five days after Hurricane Fiona struck.
"Even though there weren’t too much strong winds, just so much water it just devastated the island," said Jose Isern who told us he was looking forward to some relief. "Coming back here to central air conditioning and being able to take a regular shower. "
Almost one million people are still without power on the island and about 30 percent are without water. Authorities in Puerto Rico say flooding and landslides have cut off major roadways making it difficult to assess damage.
"There is literally no water, no electricity."
Lionel Castro lives on the island and also arrived here for temporary relief.
"Having lines to get gasoline for their cars and their homes. There's basically no food."
The island was already struggling to recover from Hurricane Maria which hit almost 5 years ago to the day.
"A lot of things that were already kind of loose from Maria, I think those were impacted and started getting worse too," said Isern.
Officials say this latest blow to the island could keep people right here.
"It’s possible that a lot of people are going to evacuate the island whether temporarily or decide to move permanently," said Osceola County Commissioner Viviana Janer.
FEMA is sending aid and personnel to help on the ground as the need for medical supplies and other essentials continue.