DeSantis faces leadership test as Hurricane Ian comes bearing down on Florida

(CNN) Gov. Ron DeSantis has already faced unprecedented challenges during his first term, including a two-year pandemic and a vexing environmental catastrophe. He's now priming for a more traditional but no less daunting test of Florida leaders: a hurricane.

Hurricane Ian, a 500-mile wide storm building strength in the Gulf of Mexico, is expected to blast into Florida's west coast Wednesday, carrying with it a potentially deadly combination of wind, rain and storm surge. If the state's painful history with Mother Nature is any indication, the recovery from Ian will be measured in months, hundreds of millions of dollars and untold heartache.

DeSantis on Wednesday morning warned the highest risk is from Collier County up to Sarasota County, with landfall expected in Charlotte County.