FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – There was a calm sunrise on Fort Lauderdale Beach Thursday morning after now-Tropical Storm Nicole brought rain and wind to the area.
“It looks like the town’s OK,” one resident said.
“We don’t have Wi-Fi at my house because of the storm, so I didn’t know what to expect, but I don’t live far so I looked out the window -- didn’t look bad,” another resident added.
It was a welcome relief to residents who were assessing the beach Thursday morning, unsure of what they would wake up to.
“All these things are dumped over, but the trees are OK and the buildings are fine,” one resident said.
It was a much difference scene Wednesday, as water spilled out onto A1A.
“It’s definitely an experience, something kind of cool to see,” Allison Doner, who is visiting from Michigan, said.
Visitors at nearby hotels took in the rain-soaked sight of high waves.
“I’m gonna walk on the beach, but right now, the sand is in my eyes,” Adrian Gusti said.
Flooding left portions of A1A impassible and most businesses along the typically touristy stretch of the beach shuttered their doors.
Water is still receding from some streets that were flooded Wednesday night.
Half a block of A1A south of Sunrise Boulevard remains blocked off to drivers and pedestrians as storm water continued to flood the roadway.
For the few businesses who braved the weather threat and stayed open Wednesday night, customers found their way inside, filling up empty seats.
“People come out because everything else is closed. They know we’re open, so they’re gonna come,” said Felicia Kozlowski, manager of Primanti Bros Grill.
Some food delivery drivers said the weather was good for business.
“It’s super busy right now, yeah,” Ryan Maharaj said. “It’s just back-to-back orders, constant notifications, delivery after delivery.”
King tide plus Nicole brought Fort Lauderdale water levels to the highest of the year.
Beaches officially closed and officials are reminding people to stay off the sand and the roads.
“It’s kind of part of the deal,” tourist Jack Cooper said. “You roll the dice down here and sometimes you get the hurricane.”