A stormy period for the southeastern United States continued Wednesday as a flash flooding emergency was issued for the Fort Lauderdale, Florida, area due to torrential rainfall that drenched the region for hours.
The flash flood emergency was issued by the National Weather Service Wednesday through the late-evening hours for Fort Lauderdale, as well as areas near Hollywood and Dania Beach. A flash flood warning was in effect earlier Wednesday throughout Broward County.
As of Thursday morning, Miami-Dade County and Broward County were under a flood watch that was scheduled to last until 8 p.m. Thursday night.
On Thursday morning, the city of Fort Lauderdale issued a state of emergency declaration due to the flash flooding.
“Large parts of the city have been underwater because of the unprecedented amount of rainfall,” Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis wrote in an update. “I give my heartfelt thanks to the police officers, firefighters, public works employees and other city staffers that worked hard through the storm.”
Numerous vehicles were seen submerged in water near the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, which was closed Wednesday afternoon, and a local fire station was forced to evacuate as over a foot of water poured into the station.
The Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport will remain closed through 12 p.m. EDT on Thursday.
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Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue stated Wednesday evening that due to the “severe flooding in multiple areas of the city,” residents should stay off of roads and “remain home unless absolutely necessary.” Flooding on Interstate 95 was evident early in the afternoon hours.
Due to the extreme rainfall and flooding, Broward County Public Schools will be closed on Thursday.
Over a 48-hour period that ended late Wednesday night, Fort Lauderdale received 25.95 inches of rainfall, with nearby Dania Beach recording 21.42 inches. Other locations such as Hollywood, Plantation and South Miami received at least 9 inches of rain.
While the 25.95-inch rainfall total recorded in Fort Lauderdale is still preliminary, if it gets confirmed, it will be the greatest 24-hour precipitation total recorded in the state. Currently, the record stands at 23.28 inches, which was reported in Key West on Nov. 11, 1980.
Around 3 p.m. EDT, a tornado warning was in effect for areas north of Miami, including Pembroke Pines. Radar indicated a tornado moving northwest in the area, and a second tornado warning was issued shortly after for Hollywood.
No tornado had been confirmed as of early Thursday despite the radar indication.
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The flooding took place as rain, thunderstorms and winds continued to gather over the northern and eastern Gulf of Mexico. These threats are forecast to spread across parts of Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas into Friday evening.
