October 3, 2022 6:00am EDT
DeSantis pushes back on CNN reporter's question about late Lee County evacuation order: 'Where were you?'
DeSantis tells Nadia Romero media was stationed in Tampa before Hurricane Ian's track shifted south
By Lindsay Kornick | Fox News
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis criticized CNN after being questioned on Lee County not having a mandatory evacuation for Hurricane Ian until the day before the storm hit.
CNN correspondent Nadia Romero spoke with the Republican governor on Sunday in Acadia, near some of the most affected areas in southwest Florida. Since Hurricane Ian made landfall in the state on Wednesday, media reports have criticized Lee County’s decision to not issue a mandatory evacuation order until Tuesday.
Romero took this question to DeSantis directly asking, "Why do you stand behind Lee County’s decision to not have that mandatory evacuation until the day before the storm?"
"Well, where was your industry stationed when the storm hit?" DeSantis replied. "Were you guys in Lee County? No, you were in Tampa."
DeSantis explained that many reports days prior to the storm did not show Lee County, which includes Cape Coral, Fort Myers and Sanibel Island, within the range of Hurricane Ian, leading many citizens to make their own decisions up to 48 hours before landfall. However, he reiterated that more attention was given to Tampa, likely leading people to hesitate on evacuating.
"But I think part of it was, so much attention was paid to Tampa, a lot of them thought they wouldn’t get the worst of it but they did, and I think it is easy to second-guess them. But they were ready for it the whole time and made that call when [it] was justifiable to do so," DeSantis said.
Romero continued to remark that neighboring counties to Lee County issued mandatory evacuation orders earlier.
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https://www.foxnews.com/media/desantis-points-media-tampa-questioned-cnn-lee-countys-late-evacuation-order