FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Residents across South Florida woke to massive pools of standing water as the overnight rainfall inundated drainage systems and caused flooding, officials said.
By 6 a.m. Monday morning, Broward County Public Works began deploying its emergency response crews across the county.
“(Crews) are out there checking the roadways,” Broward Works Director Anh Ton said. “Any flooded locations, we are sending out our pumps and vac trucks to immediately lower the stormwater.”
Ton said that crews were on standby after severe weather was expected to start yesterday evening. The volume of rain was not expected.
“We did not anticipate eight inches of rain in a few hours,” Ton said. “(It) overwhelmed our drainage system which is why the pumps were activated.”
Since Sunday afternoon, Hallandale Beach saw more than 12 inches of rain. Gulfstream Park’s horse stables were flooded, while some workers were on kayaks attempting to go stall to stall to tend to horses.
The horses are safe, Gulstream Park officials said.
Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport received more than seven inches of rain since yesterday afternoon and the airport was forced to shut down flight operations early Monday morning.
There were more than 150 flight delays and at least 11 flights canceled before operations resumed shortly after 6 a.m. with traffic at a standstill on US1 at the airport entrance.
Ton said that major improvements will be seen by the end of the day as crews remain active throughout the county.
In the meantime, officials are recommending that residents avoid flooded areas by seeking alternate routes or waiting for waters to recede.
The heavy rain impacts were felt across the southeastern United States.
In Charleston, South Carolina, morning commuters were dealing with multiple road closures during morning rush hour, the Associated Press reported.
Flash flood watches and warnings were widespread across Georgia, Louisiana, Alabama and South Carolina.