© Luis Felipe Lopez/El Nuevo HeraldWater in the streets of the Savanna community in Weston was up to 18 inches, prompting at least one person to venture out in a kayak to navigate the road.
After three days of serious rain and flooding across the area, South Florida will get a slight break on Thursday but an increased risk of storms as the day goes on continues.
There were no flood watches or warnings in effect Thursday but that could change by the afternoon.
Heavy flooding was reported Wednesday throughout Broward, including the parking lot of the Sawgrass Mills mall, which
had to close Wednesday and remained closed Thursday due to the flooding.
In Davie, heavy flooding was reported on some streets, including in the area of Southwest 130th Avenue and 7th Court. One resident said he was going to Home Depot to get sandbags for himself and his neighbors to protect from flooding.
"I'm trying to help out my neighbors, I'm a caring person. I lived in the neighborhood a long time, I see people's homes are getting in bad shape," Mitch Gerber said.
Also in Davie, at the Sunshine Village mobile home park on Southwest 5th Street, the Red Cross responded to assist residents.
"We didn't want the water to rise any higher, I mean it's like two steps away from my door," Davie resident Angel Munoz said. "I'm glad we've had a break but I don't know if there's more coming, I think there is more coming right? I'm concerned about that."
The Coral Springs Fire Department said one of their canals was high, making it difficult for water to move out quickly. They urged residents to move vehicles to high ground and avoid driving after dark if possible.
In Hollywood, drivers were having a tough time getting across streets, including on Stirling Road west of the Florida's Turnpike.
"Pack your rain gear, extra patience and extra time on the roads this morning," Hollywood Police tweeted.
Flooding was also reported in Sunrise, Weston, Lauderhill, and Southwest Ranches.
Officials at American Heritage in Plantation said they were experiencing heavy flooding at the school, but no students were affected since classes ended May 31.
In Plantation Acres, homeowner Deanna Fonseca said she had to rescue her chickens from flooding on her low-lying area.
"Chippy was underwater up to his neck, I had to put him in a bathtub with towels wrapped around him," she said. "We had to move everything out at 1 o'clock in the morning."
The heavy rain was causing flights to be canceled at both of South Florida's major airports Wednesday and into Thursday. Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport reported 81 delays and 12 cancellations Thursday morning. There were another 18 cancellations reported at Miami International Airport Thursday morning.
Some areas of South Florida had double digit rain totals on Tuesday, with Plantation reporting over 11 inches of rain while Deerfield Beach and Coral Springs had locations reporting just over 10 inches.
The wet pattern will continue into the weekend before we start to dry out, hopefully by Sunday.
R.C.
* Which is, of course, also a slightly sloping 'upgrade' depending upon your directection, eh what?.
** Highest point in state is up on the border with Alabama, (at a whopping 345 feet above sea level). So we have no worries if the Canary Islands do the MSMipitched big mountainside-slide, with its ensuring mega tsunami...indeed, we'll then have no worries at all, most likely. )
But at least it should then be cooler than this place... I hope. ***
*** Did you ever see the Simpsons' episone where Bart is killed by Mr. Burns' limo, and shocked tp find himself heaven bound on an 'Escalator..To Heaven." But his scales' balance tips to eternal damnation because he spits off the side of the escalator. Check it out.: [Link]
Have you seen the bumper stickers "in the event of rapture, this care with be unmanned"? Yah just gotta love simplistic followers of the Bible as being the inerrant and literal word of God; (usually, more specifically but unawaringly referencing the 'King James Version" and being concurrently unaware that it's a bloody translation by a committee!)
I do believe that in Revelation, it states that in the 'Rapture, that 144,000 'chosen' people (which was a big lot of folk back then, I guess...) will evaporate to heaven. or such.
Well I guarantee that they've sold more thatn a million of those stupid stickers; and that the churches that these 'holier than thou' folks, contain, in the US alone, no less than 144 MILLION members. Thus, it's like guaranteeing you are going to win a sweepstakes where the odds are one out of one thousand that you will. (I doubt the TV preachers point this out.)
RC