Flights arrive in Houston with evacuees from Florida ahead of Hurricane Ian

HOUSTON — Hurricane Ian is on track to impact Florida as early as Wednesday, specifically the Port Charlotte and Fort Myers area, the latest models show. 

There are many elements of this storm — including wind, rain, storm surge and tornadoes — which is why a lot of people are evacuating the state. 

A few flights out of Tampa and Fort Myers were scheduled to land in Houston Tuesday night. These were expected to be the last flights out of Tampa and Fort Myers after the Tampa International Airport and the Southwest Florida International Airport canceled flights Tuesday afternoon ahead of the storm. 

RELATED: Hurricane Ian update: Florida landfall expected late Wednesday

A Tampa couple said they spent the past few days preparing their home in anticipation of Hurricane Ian. Earlier models showed Tampa Bay taking a direct hit but the latest update released Tuesday at 4 p.m. put the storm’s landfall south of Tampa near Port Charlotte and Fort Myers. 

The couple said they’re relieved but feel for everyone in the storm’s path. 

“We may not get the brunt of it. I feel for the people in Fort Myers,” said Stuart and Elena Friedman. “It doesn’t matter who gets it. It’s really big and a lot of wind, and it’s stationary, so a lot of water. So it’s going to be difficult for a lot of people.”

RELATED: How Houstonians are helping Floridians deal with Hurrican Ian

According to FlightAware, a total of about 140 flights were canceled both in and out of Tampa Tuesday and 31 flights were canceled in Fort Myers.

All flights have been canceled at both airports for Wednesday and many for Thursday as well.

It’s not known when those airports will reopen. 

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