FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The day after torrential rainfall slammed cities across Broward County, residents in Fort Lauderdale continued to deal with inundated neighborhoods Thursday.
One of those neighborhoods was Fort Lauderdale’s Edgewood neighborhood, directly north of the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, which was closed after more than 17 inches of rain fell in the area.
Residents were using lifted vehicles, boats and even trudging through waters up to their waists to get around.
“I mean, a lot of people have evacuated,” one Edgewood resident said. “There’s just debris everywhere and cars are, like, really flooded. Yeah. But yeah, it’s been an intense experience.”
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Rescues were underway in neighborhoods throughout Fort Lauderdale, including Edgewood.
Many rescued residents in the Edgewood area were being taken to a nearby shopping plaza off of State Road 84, where the American Red Cross was assisting.
Edgewood conditions:
Local 10 News embedded with a Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission rescue crew early Thursday afternoon.
Crews were going home-to-home in swamp buggies to check on flooded-in residents.
Rescuers pulled in a Broward school district employee trudging through flood waters as Local 10 News reporter Roy Ramos was broadcasting live.
Further north, the eastbound lanes of Broward Boulevard near Interstate 95 remained underwater Thursday morning, though waters had receded by the afternoon.
Nevertheless, drivers were still heading through. So were pedestrians.
Officials closed the Broward Boulevard exit from Interstate 95.
Tow trucks zigzagged Fort Lauderdale Thursday morning looking for stranded drivers.
Parts of State Road 84 and Davie Boulevard were also flooded.
Officials update residents on flooding:
Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis held a news conference alongside fellow city officials Thursday.
“No city could have planned for this,” he said, in response to a question in response to whether development could have played a role in drainage issues in the city.
“There is no part of the city that has not been impacted,” he added.
Watch mayor’s full news conference:
Trantalis said he’s heard from a number of state and local officials, but Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis hadn’t called as of late Thursday morning.
“I‘m not sure what’s going on,” Trantalis said. “But I’m sure he’s very interested in what’s going on here. And we’re happy to work with his office.”
Despite a number of rescues of trapped residents and motorists, officials said they weren’t aware of any deaths.
Storm Update: Wednesday, April 13 10:30 a.m.
— City of Fort Lauderdale (@FTLCityNews) April 13, 2023
Many roads across the City are still impassable due to flooding. Crews are clearing storm drains. Vacuum trucks are being deployed strategically throughout the City. However, because of the extreme amount of water, most areas will need… pic.twitter.com/wF9sRJz5YZ