Three days of rainfall caused from 5 to 15 inches of flooding in areas of Miami-Dade County. The water damaged cars, businesses and homes. And as more strong storms threaten the same areas, a flood advisory continues on Wednesday afternoon.
The area near 74th Street that is West of the Palmetto Expressway in the town of Medley was still dangerous for drivers. Although the rain stopped at about 10 p.m. Tuesday, Truck Max and other nearby businesses were still dealing with flooding.
“As you can see, everything is underwater. There are cars flooded right outside,” said Manny Marono, the general manager at Truck Max, adding, “I am concerned that we are going to continue to flood here and back at home.”
Miami-Dade Commissioner Jose “Pepe” Diaz said some of the businesses that were reporting property damage have experienced flooding before, but not to this level.
“We’ve got to get this water out of here because the longer that water sits, the worst it will be,” Diaz said.
In Doral, tow trucks were still removing stranded cars from the area near the intersection of 79th Street and Doral Avenue. Authorities were concerned about flooded areas where it was difficult for drivers to distinguish where the roads end and the overflowing canals begin.
“The canals that are on West Fourth Avenue: That’s where the dangers come in because these canals get to the tipping point,” Hialeah Fire Rescue District Chief David Rodriguez said.
At a supermarket in Hialeah, Leonardo Fuentes was cleaning and disinfecting the floor after the water flooded the store. Lazaro Hernandez, a Hialeah resident, said that in four decades of living there he had never seen flooding that severe. On Okeechobee road, several cars were underwater. The engines were completely submerged.
“We have pumps working out throughout the city," Hialeah Mayor Carlos Hernandez said. “Our biggest enemy right now is more rain.”
Wednesday night, parts of Hialeah were still dealing with several inches of flooding, more than 24 hours after Tuesday’s record rainfall.
In Opa-locka, there was flooding along Alexandria Avenue. And in North Miami, there was still flooding in areas along 11th Avenue. The canals were still overflowing in El Portal and areas of Biscayne Boulevard were still flooded near Miami Shores.
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WEATHER AUTHORITY