Woman walking barefoot on wet floor

Prepare for Flooding: Helpful Links

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Stay prepared for flooding throughout the hurricane season. No drainage system, no matter how well designed, is 100% flood proof. Whether you live in a flood-prone area or not, potential flooding from heavy rains may still affect you. Preparing for potential flooding requires action and the following list of links can help you get started.

First, know your risk for flooding. Visit FEMA’s Flood Map Service Center at https://msc.fema.gov/portal/home and locate your flood zone. Sign up for your community’s warning system with the Emergency Alert System (EAS) at https://www.fcc.gov/emergency-alert-system and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)  https://www.noaa.gov. Also, consider purchasing a weather radio to receive local emergency alerts and updates.

Additionally, residents can prepare for the potential impact of a flood by purchasing or renewing a flood insurance policy. Homeowner’s insurance policies do not cover flooding. It typically takes a new flood insurance policy up to 30 days for the policy to go into effect so the time to buy is well before a disaster. Visit https://www.floodsmart.gov for help with obtaining flood coverage under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).

Most importantly, make a plan for your household so that you and your family know what to do, where to go and what you will need to protect yourselves from flooding. Learn and practice evacuation routes, shelter plans, and flash flood response. Gather supplies, including non-perishable foods, cleaning supplies and water for several days, in case you must leave immediately or if services are cut off in your area. Store important documents and photos in watertight plastic containers.

You can find more information and helpful tips at https://www.ready.gov/plan.

Hurricane Graphic

New Hurricane Tool

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Cone of concern. Cone of dread. Cone of death. The National Hurricane Center’s (NHC) familiar forecast cone map goes by a lot of unofficial nicknames, all of which reflect this undeniable fact: you feel worried if you’re in it and better if you’re not.

That misreading of the forecast cone has made it the subject of some criticism over the years. Emergency managers believe it fails to reflect the risks posed to coastal communities that may be out of the cone one day but in it the next. Also, those in-land may be close enough to the eye of a storm to still experience serious wind damage.

This year, the NHC is rolling out an experimental version intended to address those issues by adding new layers of threats and a lot more colors. The NHC believes the new map better bridges the gap between informing the public and confusing it.

The forecast cone, introduced 22 years ago, has been misinterpreted by the public practically since day one. It’s meant to show the NHC best guess for where the eye of the storm will travel, with a cone around it that follows a formula based on the average errors the hurricane center makes when tracking a storm.

It’s a handy tool for showing where a storm may go. But even a small track shift can translate to a big change for a hurricane that parallels Florida’s long coastline. For example, the relatively minor shifts in the NHC predictions for Hurricane Ian’s path in 2022 led to entire counties in Florida exiting the forecast cone’s shaded area and, in some cases, delaying or avoiding calls for evacuation in response.

Starting August 15, the NHC will publish an experimental second version of the cone, where the inland spots under watches and warnings will also be colored in red and blue. It also will show the wind field of the storm, depicted in a gold tone, showing how far out the damaging winds stretch. This addition should make residents outside the cone more aware of the potential impacts from high winds. For more details on the new forecast cone visit NHC at https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/pdf/NHC_Cone_Graphic_Change_Announcement.pdf.

Excerpt from: Carter Weinhofer (May 15, 2024), New Hurricane Graphics Better Explain The Dangers of Approaching Storms,  Retrieved June 6, 2024 from https://www.yourobserver.com/news/2024/may/15/hurricane-graphics-dangers-storms

Roadway storm drain blocked by fallen leaves

Leaves Can Cause Flooding

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See how a few leaves caused local street flooding in one South Florida neighborhood. Click the link to watch this incredible video https://youtu.be/R9PBy4_7zmM

man picking up trash from storm drain

Adopt A Storm Drain

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Debris blocking storm drains can be a local flooding hazard. Even an average afternoon rainstorm can cause local street flooding if the water has nowhere to go. Just a small amount of debris and trash on top of a drain grate can reduce drainage capacity. By keeping the storm drain clear of debris, it can function as designed allowing storm water to flow away from your home and discharge into flood control canals.

Some helpful tools for cleaning a storm drain include: a broom, a rake, a trash grabber, gloves, an orange cone and/or safety vest, a shovel or dustpan and a pail or yard waste bag. Never remove the grate or otherwise attempt to clean inside the catch basin. Clean only the surface of the storm drains grate and the area around it. If the drain appears to be plugged or have any problems, contact your community board/property manager or local municipality to address the issue.

Adopting a storm drain only takes a small amount of time. Let friends and neighbors know about your commitment and invite them to adopt a storm drain too.

Hurricane Season sign

Only A Month Away

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Florida’s hurricane season begins on June 1 and ends November 30. A typical season will average 12 tropical storms with sustained winds of at least 39 miles per hour, of which six may turn into hurricanes with winds of 74 miles per hour or more. In addition to high winds, hurricanes and tropical storms can bring torrential rainfall. These severe weather events can produce localized flooding that can be exacerbated by improperly maintained drainage systems.

Residential communities and businesses can help mitigate the impacts from severe storms with a few simple steps. One crucial step is the pre-storm inspection and maintenance of drainage infrastructure. Drainage infrastructure can include inlets, discharge control structures, connecting pipes and ponds. Proper maintenance of these facilities will ensure unobstructed flow of stormwater away from homes and fully operational equipment.

Secondly, residential communities and businesses with operable discharge control structures can request authorization from the Lake Worth Drainage District (LWDD) to open these structures prior to the storm. Lowering pond levels before the hurricane arrives can provide additional storage for excess stormwater. LWDD recommends the establishment of a drainage committee whose role is to provide for the maintenance and operation of the community or business’ drainage system. Drainage committees may consist of one or more individuals like board members, residents and/or property managers. All members of the Drainage committee should register with LWDD on its website at www.lwdd.net/storm-response. This registration process ensures the LWDD knows who to contact and where to send important weather alerts and instructions.

During the storm event, follow emergency management instructions via local news and take appropriate actions to keep yourself, family and property safe. For safety reasons most emergency personnel will not be deployed during a weather event. Only when winds have subsided will response operations begin.

Depending on the volume and duration of rainfall, expect streets, sidewalks, driveways and lawns to flood. These areas are designed to function as secondary detention areas and help to keep water away from homes and businesses. This flooding is temporary and will begin to recede after an event has passed. During the storm event LWDD personnel will be monitoring canal elevations and making operational adjustments to major flood control structures. This work can be conducted during the storm via wireless mobile devices and provides instantaneous response to changes in water elevations.

It may be tempting to explore outside but stay indoors after the storm. For your safety and to keep roadways clear for emergency response vehicles, stay inside until told otherwise by authorities. Do not attempt to walk in flooded areas. Flood water may be unsanitary and there may be downed power lines or other hazards that are not visible. Do not drive on flooded roadways as vehicles can become unstable and float in as little as a few inches of water. Additionally, canal banks may fail, and roadways may be affected by sinkholes. The location of roads and sidewalks may not be discernible from canals and life-threatening accidents can occur.

No system, no matter how well designed, is 100% flood proof. The likelihood of flooding depends on several variables such as rainfall volume, ground saturation and local terrain. But collaborating closely with communities, businesses and other water management agencies, LWDD can help keep you and your property safe from flooding.