South Florida, including the Miami and Fort Lauderdale areas, were deluged with torrential rain on Wednesday that caused “life-threatening flooding”. The flood watches were extended until Friday evening.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis declared an emergency for Broward, Collier, Lee, Miami-Dade, and Sarasota counties, writing that the heavy rain and floods have affected the “operational capability of critical infrastructure,” including major interstates, roadways, schools and airports.
Officials warned on Wednesday, “Many areas are inundated with water w/ stalled cars & more rainfall is on the way.” They added, “Stay off the roadways if possible.”
Over 600 flight cancellations and delays across two of the region’s main airports were reported. At least 334 flights in and out of Miami International Airport were canceled and there were more than 287 flights canceled in and out of Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.
The spate of videos posted to social media showed motorists stranded in their cars, some with water levels reaching the vehicles’ windows. Others could be seen wading though waist-high water, some carrying their belongings on their backs. In Miami, a city where flooding may occur on some streets even when it has not rained, videos showed stranded cars that were nearly entirely submerged under water.
Hallandale Beach was one of the worst hit. Footage showed one man kayaking among the stranded cars; a family lost their son during the storm, but were later reunited with the help of local police who were able to find the young boy; a woman who was driving to work said she spent five hours stuck in her car along Hallandale Beach Boulevard and US Route 1 that were choked with stranded and abandoned vehicles.
Officials urged residents to shelter in place and avoid driving or walking through the water.
Hollywood resident Kait Madrigal told CNN, “The lights were out at multiple intersections and there were already cars that were stalled and abandoned. I’ve never seen it like that.”
Along with the heavy rainfall, the storm system also brought an EF1 tornado on Wednesday to Hobe Sound, located in Martin County about 35 miles north of West Palm Beach, a National Weather Service damage survey confirmed.
The state received a month’s worth of rain in one day. Fort Lauderdale saw a preliminary rainfall total of roughly 9.58 inches Wednesday, making it the city’s eighth wettest day on record, according to data from the National Weather Service.
“Early afternoon is when everyone was let out early from work to get home before the rain started,” Fort Lauderdale mayor Dean Trantalis told CNN. “The streets were jammed. Instead of being flooded with water, they were flooded with cars.”
June, July, August and September are generally the wettest months of the year for much of Florida, but heavy rain events are getting even heavier as the world warms due to fossil fuel pollution.
