Emergency crews launched airboats into submerged streets on Wednesday to rescue central Florida residents trapped by rising floodwaters from a stalled Tropical Storm Fay, which soaked the state for a third consecutive day.
Fay formed over the weekend in the Atlantic and was blamed for 20 deaths in the Caribbean.
Fay skipped almost harmlessly over the island chain, but stalled over the peninsula on a second swing through Florida. There, it has done the most damage.
On Wednesday, officials reported flooding in hundreds of homes in Brevard and St. Lucie counties, some by up to 1.5m of standing water. In three towns, rising waters backed up sewage systems. It wasn’t immediately clear how many residents had been displaced or were stranded, but county officials reported making dozens of rescues.
The Florida National Guard mobilized about a dozen guardsmen and some high-water vehicles to assist with damage assessment and help with evacuations, spokesman for the Florida Department of Military Affairs John Myatt said.
By Wednesday evening, the storm’s center had moved over the Atlantic Ocean, and its winds were picking up speed.
Forecasters expected the storm to strengthen before turning back toward the mainland yesterday, when it will probably hit Florida for the third time this week. But National Hurricane Center meteorologist Corey Walton said it was unlikely the storm would gain enough energy over the water to reach hurricane strength.
Forecasters originally expected Fay to energize over the ocean and possibly become a hurricane before landing in Florida for the third time later this week.
Tom Christopher, St. Lucie County emergency management coordinator, said between 85 and 140 people were rescued by boat or high-clearance vehicles by Wednesday afternoon. He said no more were stranded, though other families seemed to be stuck without a way to leave.
At 11pm on Wednesday, the storm was just off Florida’s east coast, about 56km southeast of Daytona Beach. Its maximum sustained winds were 96.5kph, and it was expected to move slowly toward the northwest overnight.
Gill said hundreds of homes had been flooded, though a count was incomplete.
The rain was welcome in dry Florida and Georgia cropland, but could also hurt farmers’ production. Forecasters predicted parts of northern Florida could get 25cm to 38cm of rain, while southern Georgia could receive 7cm to 15cm.
Before moving east, the storm flooded streets in Naples, downed trees and cut power to some 95,000 homes and businesses. Tornadoes spawned by the storm damaged 51 homes in Brevard County, southeast of Orlando, including nine homes that were totaled. In the Keys, officials estimated 25,000 tourists evacuated.
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