While federal and state officials continue to respond to the damage from Hurricane Ian, FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell defended officials in Lee County, Florida, after a New York Times report made it seem that they had failed to properly respond to the storm which ravaged their area.

In an interview with "Fox News Sunday," Criswell noted that it was difficult to guess exactly where Ian was going to strike.

"This storm, it was really dynamic, and it was very unpredictable for a long period of time," Criswell said. "Just 72 hours before the storm made landfall, Lee County wasn't even in the hurricane path. It wasn't even in the predicted zone of where it was going to make impact, and it continued to move south day by day."

"As soon as the storm predictions were that it was going to impact Lee County, I know that local officials immediately put the right measures in place to make sure that they were warning citizens to get them out of harm's way," she continued.

In light of the unpredictability of weather events, Criswell advised that one of the best things Americans can do to protect their property is flood insurance – and that people should get it regardless of what her own agency says about where they live.

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FEMA has flood maps that classify different areas according to flood risk, with property owners in the most high-risk areas being required to purchase flood insurance. Criswell observed, however, that weather can be unpredictable and that people should get insured event if they do not have to do so.

"Where it rains, it can flood," Criswell told host Shannon Bream. She said that FEMA maps are focused on "inundation at the coastal levels and river rain areas," but that now rain is "coming down at rates far higher than we've seen in the past."

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"People need to make sure that they’re understanding what their risk is," Criswell added. "While we require flood insurance for certain areas, it is available for everybody to buy. And so insurance is one of those best tools that you can have. And again, if you’re in an area where it rains, it can floor and flood insurance is your best bet to make sure you can protect your belongings."

The FEMA head also cautioned that significant dangers exist after a hurricane like Ian has already come and gone.

"We see so many more injuries, and sometimes more fatalities after the storm," Criswell said, explaining the dangers of standing water, which can have hidden debris and power lines below the surface. On top of that, she said that she has seen increases in dehydration and heart attacks after hurricanes.

"We want to make sure that people are being extra cautious," she said.

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Deanne Criswell on Sunday warned residents to be “vigilant” and careful in the coming days after Hurricane Ian struck Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina. Criswell told “Fox News Sunday” anchor Shannon Bream that Americans often “worry a lot about the direct impacts from the storm itself” but noted…

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A pair of disturbances are in the Atlantic Ocean Sunday afternoon, one of which the National Hurricane Center estimates has a high chance of becoming a storm system by next weekend and one of which has a high chance of becoming nothing in its 2 p.m. update.

Tropical Storm Orlene became a hurricane Saturday.

A look at the damage in Naples shows the extent of Hurricane Ian's wrath citywide.

The images of Hurricane Ian’s aftermath show evidence of Florida’s increasingly dense development — flattened beach communities, boats heaved into piles, mobile homes scattered like toys. But one of the most riveting early signs of the devastation came from a place with deep connections to a movement that has worked to keep bulldozers away from the state’s natural treasures. Before dawn on ...

The rapidly intensifying Hurricane Orlene is projected to hit between the queer hotspot and Mazatlan.

Residents in Dunbar say they have grown accustomed to relying on themselves and looking out for each other.

If you live in one of the hurricane-ravaged areas of Southwest Florida like I do, and haven’t been able to get to your property to survey the damage because of high water, washed-out roads or gaps in bridges, there is help.

Floridians say they're waiting for hours in long lines hoping to secure enough fuel for cars and generators as Ian leaves many without power.

Residents in central Florida donned fishing waders, boots and bug spray and canoed or kayaked to their homes on streets where floodwaters continued rising Sunday despite it being four days since Hurricane Ian tore through the state. Ben Bertat found 4 inches (10 centimeters) of water in his house by Lake Harney off North Jungle Street in a rural part of Seminole County, north of Orlando, after kayaking to it Sunday morning. Only a day earlier, there had been no water.

A monster-sized Hurricane Ian pummeled Florida on Wednesday with crushing storm surge, obliterating wind speeds and torrential rainfall.

Rescuers plucked stranded residents from their homes and herded cattle to higher ground as the Myakka River overflowed its banks.

There are two tropical disturbances on the map – one of no consequence and one we’ll keep an eye on.

Just off Cape Romano Island and south of Marco Island, the dome homes endured for 40 years. They were built in 1982 by retired oil producer Bob Lee.

Rubio on Sunday told CNN he would fight against the bill if it includes spending unrelated to the hurricane damages. "That's the key," he said.

Update: Cooper said “many hazards remain” across the state, including downed trees and power lines.

Only 13-15% of Floridians have flood insurance, says the Insurance Information Institute.

Fans of the various Sanibel and Captiva restaurants began posting on social media before Hurricane Ian, many hoping the businesses would pull through.

After taking a short airboat ride through some flooded North Port neighborhoods, Governor Ron DeSantis said the standing water there is the worst in the state.