South FL Braces For More Heavy Rains, Flooding: Forecast

FLORIDA — After days of heavy rainfall caused life-threatening flooding that swamped streets across South Florida, the area is bracing for even more wet weather Friday.

Some areas saw 20 inches or more of rain, flooding neighborhoods and leaving numerous roads impassable for vehicles. At one point, southbound traffic was briefly diverted on major artery Interstate 95 in Broward County as water was pumped from a flooded section of the highway, the Florida Highway Patrol said in an email.

Showers and thunderstorms are likely to start again Friday morning and continue through much of the afternoon, with the southern portions of the region seeing the most rain, the National Weather Service in Miami posted to X, formerly Twitter.

A flood watch remains in effect through Friday evening in South Florida, plus Lee and Charlotte counties.

The Tampa metro has escaped the torrential rainfall amounts, but the forecast for the weekend calls for heavy rain at times. (See the full forecast below.)

The downpours hit Tuesday and continued into Wednesday, delaying flights at two of the state’s largest airports and leaving vehicles waterlogged and stalled in some of the region’s lowest-lying streets. On Thursday, travelers tried to salvage their plans as residents cleared debris before the next round of rain.

The NWS cautioned that even smaller amounts of precipitation could impact saturated areas, causing flash floods on Friday before the region has a chance to recover.

A state of emergency issued by Gov. Ron DeSantis in Broward, Collier, Lee, Miami-Dade and Sarasota counties as Invest AL 90, a disorganized low-pressure tropical disturbance — the first of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season — brought heavy rains and flooding to many parts of the state.

The invest, which has low chances of cyclone formation, moved northwest across the state into the Atlantic Ocean. As of Friday morning, the storm system was off the Carolinas, according to the NHC.

In Miami-Dade County, Mayor Daniella Levine Cava activated the county’s Emergency Operations Center to a Level 2 partial activation Thursday afternoon in anticipation of continued rainfall, according to a news release. This allows the county’s Department of Emergency Management to coordinate resources for the areas hit hardest by the storm system.

“As we prepare for additional rain this afternoon, I’m doing everything in my power to make sure we have all the resources available and ready to deploy immediately,” the mayor said. “The impacts of the flooding have been localized in the most vulnerable areas and we want to make sure we can protect our residents in need.”

Here's the weekend forecast for Tampa Bay from the National Weather Service:

Friday: Mostly sunny with a slight chance of thunderstorms. A slight chance of showers this morning, then a chance of showers this afternoon. Some thunderstorms may produce heavy rainfall. Highs in the mid 90s. East winds around 5 mph, becoming west around 5 mph this afternoon. Chance of rain 50 percent.

Friday Night: Partly cloudy with a chance of showers with a slight chance of thunderstorms. Some thunderstorms may produce heavy rainfall. Humid with lows in the upper 70s. West winds around 5 mph, becoming south after midnight. Chance of rain 50 percent.

Saturday: Mostly sunny. A chance of showers and thunderstorms in the morning, then showers likely with a chance of thunderstorms in the afternoon. Some thunderstorms may produce heavy rainfall in the morning. Humid with highs in the lower 90s. South winds 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70 percent.

Saturday Night: Mostly cloudy with a chance of thunderstorms. Showers likely, mainly in the evening. Humid with lows in the upper 70s. South winds around 5 mph, becoming east after midnight. Chance of rain 60 percent.

Sunday: Partly sunny with a chance of thunderstorms. A chance of showers in the morning, then showers likely in the afternoon. Humid with highs in the mid 90s. East winds 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60 percent. Heat index values up to 106.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.