Torrential downpours in South Florida over the past 24 hours have flooded roads throughout the region, creating life-threatening conditions — and forecasters warned heavy to excessive rainfall was expected to last through Friday.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis declared an emergency in Broward, Collier, Lee, Miami-Dade and Sarasota counties “due to major flooding” soon after the mayors of Miami and Fort Lauderdale both declared local states of emergency on Wednesday evening.
Numerous flash flood emergencies were issued Wednesday as rainfall totals approached 12 inches in some spots, while the extreme weather prompted a ground stop at Miami International Airport, flight delays and road closures — including parts of a major highway.
A total of 9.54 inches of rain fell in Fort Lauderdale, which amounts to a typical June’s worth of rain in just one day. “Another 3-5 inches is expected overnight,” the city of Fort Lauderdale said on X.
This is the result of a firehose of tropical moisture flowing from southwest to northeast across the unusually warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico.
As the climate warms, extreme precipitation events such as this one are becoming more frequent and intense, studies show.
The NWS Miami office had as of 5:30pm issued seven flash flood emergencies — the most dire flood alert the NWS issues, indicating an imminent threat to life and property.
It later issued flood warnings for portions of Broward, Miami-Dade, Collier and Hendry counties through 8am Thursday ET after the flash flood emergency expired.
Computer models project more heavy rainfall on Thursday, which would quickly lead to more severe flooding.
The heaviest rain was focused on South Florida in part because of an area of circulation, referred to as Invest 90L, embedded within the tropical moisture due to its potential to develop into a tropical storm.
Miami-Dade and Broward counties had been under a flood watch for most of the week after heavy rainfall began Tuesday, but the situation escalated dramatically Wednesday afternoon as torrential rains fell.
Fort Lauderdale International Airport reported 11.19 inches of rain since midnight on Wednesday, according to the NWS. Some weather stations near Hollywood, Fla., eclipsed 13 inches of rain since midnight Wednesday.
The NWS Weather Prediction Center issued a forecast discussion just before 5:30pm Wednesday saying “catastrophic and life-threatening flash flooding” was expected to continue into the evening across South Florida
over the highly urbanized and densely populated I-95 corridor from Fort Lauderdale south through Miami and Homestead.
The agency warned an additional 4 to 8 inches of rain could fall in the Miami area, “with isolated 10+ inch amounts.” “For some locations, this will bring multi-day storm totals upwards of 15 to 20+ inches. Significant and life-threatening flash flooding is ongoing and is expected to continue as a result over the next several hours,” the agency stated.
