ANNALS OF DeSANTISTAN: After a Deluge Floods Streets, South Florida Braces for More Rain.

On May 17, 2024, a date that will live in infamy. Florida's Boy Governor. RONALD DION DeSANTIS signed Republican-sponsored legislation to delete climate change considerations from Florida law.  He is now reaping. the whirlwind.  From The New York Times: 

After a Deluge Floods Streets, South Florida Braces for More Rain

Hundreds of flights were canceled, and the governor declared a state of emergency in several counties. More downpours are expected on Thursday.

Residents navigated a flooded street in Hollywood, Fla. on Wednesday.Credit...Joe Raedle/Getty Images

By Judson Jones and Isabella Kwai

Judson Jones is a meteorologist and reporter for The Times.

June 13, 2024Updated 2:28 p.m. ET

Residents across a waterlogged South Florida were bracing on Thursday for another around of showers and thunderstorms that would raise the risk of flash flooding through the afternoon, following days of heavy rain that have already caused major travel disruptions and flooded roads and homes.

It was forecast to be the third consecutive day of tropical downpours, as a line of storms was once again expected to stretch from the west coast to the east coast of the state.

The prospect of rainfall totals similar to those measured on Wednesday, and reports of persistent standing water, prompted forecasters at the Weather Prediction Center to elevate the risk for excessive rain to “high,” the top level on a four-category scale. The area of rain and flood risk included the east-west section of Interstate 75 known as Alligator Alley.

Forecast risk of excessive rain for Thursday

Risk

Some

Moderate

High

200MI

• X
• +
• -

Get notified about extreme weather risks in places you choose »

Source: National Weather Service Notes: This map indicates risk in up to three tiers: Some, there is at least some chance of extreme weather in the area; Moderate, it is likely that damaging weather will happen in the area; and High, extreme, dangerous weather is expected in the area. Data is as of June 13 at 3:21 p.m. Eastern and is not available for Alaska and Hawaii. By The New York Times

Forecasters said there was potential for higher-end rainfall totals, with four to eight inches of additional rain likely and some locations potentially receiving more than 10 inches.

Exactly where the heaviest rain will fall is unknown, but it will take only a little to exacerbate the ongoing flooding, warned forecasters, particularly in rural and urban locations that have already seen rain.

Heavy rainfall on Wednesday caused flash flooding from Fort Lauderdale to downtown Miami, battering major urban areas and shuttering roads, including part of the Interstate 95. The severity of the weather prompted Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida to declare a state of emergency in Broward, Collier, Lee, Miami-Dade and Sarasota counties.

Image

Heavy rainfall over the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport on Wednesday. Many flights were either canceled or delayed due to the bad weather.Credit...Matias J. Ocner/Miami Herald, via Associated Press

The floodwaters have swamped shopping strips, submerged cars and left residents in some neighborhoods wading waist-deep through the deluge. School officials in Parkland, Fla., also postponed plans to begin demolishing Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, where a former student killed 17 people in 2018, because of the weather.

A daily record of nine and a half inches of rainfall was set in Fort Lauderdale on Wednesday, breaking a previous record of almost five and a half inches that had stood since 1978. In two days, more than a foot of rain fell from the sky over Miami Beach, with 13.64 inches being reported.

Other 48-hour rain totals have almost doubled that amount, with North Miami unofficially receiving 20 inches and Hallandale and Hollywood each receiving 19 inches since Tuesday. All eclipsed the average rainfall of 10 and a half inches for June in the Miami area.

Flood watches were still in place through Thursday for parts of the state, the National Weather Service warned. Officials in several places, including Fort Lauderdale, urged residents to avoid drivingwhile water levels remain high. Two people died and three others were injured in a car crash in Collier County, according to the Florida Highway Patrol, after a driver lost control in the wet weather conditions.

Travelers on Thursday were still experiencing disruptions. More than 400 flights to or from Miami International Airport and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport were either canceled or delayed on Thursday, according to FlightAware. American Airlines had canceled more than 150 flights to and from the airport in Miami, about a quarter of its planned trips there for the day.

Niraj Chokshi and Jesus Jiménez contributed reporting.

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