King tides arrived right on time along South Florida’s coast over the weekend, but the flooding was way worse than anyone expected, experts say.
Surging ocean water flooded Hollywood’s Broadwalk and State Road A1A in Fort Lauderdale, forcing police to shut down a 2-mile stretch of State Road A1A north of Sunrise Boulevard.
The extreme flooding, with high tides measuring about 2 feet higher than normal at Port Everglades, were powered by a full moon and a nasty nor’easter that lashed the East Coast with coastal flooding, wind and rain, said Chris Fisher, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Miami.
“The highest king tides are always in September and October,” Fisher told the South Florida Sun Sentinel. “The gravitational pull is at its strongest this time of year. So this was going to be one of the higher king tides of the year. On top of that, the nor’easter gave us some higher seas over the past few days and increasing swell as well. That played a role in making the tide higher than what we’d expect to see.”
Some were surprised by the fact that it was flooding on a bright and sunny day without a drop of rain.
There’s a reason for that, said Nancy Gassman, chief resilience officer for the city of Fort Lauderdale.
“Over the weekend we had a tide that hit 2.77 feet … and the ocean spilled over onto A1A,” Gassman said. “This wasn’t a rain event. This was the ocean being so high that it eclipsed the beach and came over onto A1A. And that was also true on the Hollywood Broadwalk as well.”
The experts at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predict how high the tides will be.
“This tide came in 1.5 feet higher than predicted,” Gassman told the Sun Sentinel. “We were preparing for x and we got 1.5 feet higher than x. It was high on Saturday but it was the highest on Sunday.”
Gassman says Fort Lauderdale and other coastal cities are seeing tides higher than they’ve ever experienced — and residents can’t help but notice.
“People will ask us to send out a pumper truck,” Gassman said. “You can’t pump the ocean. There’s nowhere for us to put that water.”
King tide flooding in Fort Lauderdale near State Road A1A north of Sunrise Boulevard on Sunday. (Courtesy/Miami Herald)
In early September, Fort Lauderdale sent out alerts warning residents that higher tides are possible on both the new moon and the full moon.
Fort Lauderdale sent out another alert on Friday warning that higher tides were expected from Saturday, Sept. 26, through Thursday, Oct. 1.
“Rain before or during peak tide times will worsen ponding,” the alert said. “Avoid driving through standing water.”
Fort Lauderdale Commissioner Steve Glassman said he might have gotten caught in the flooding had he not seen the alerts.
“We got the alerts early,” Glassman told the Sun Sentinel. “It has been a really bad king tide season. The good news is it’s not every street everywhere. So people can find alternative routes. But it was really high (Sunday). It was crazy.”
To help people stay safe, Fort Lauderdale has been sending out regular alerts about king tide flooding.
“We’ve been sending alerts and keeping people aware of what’s happening,” Glassman said. “When you have had a lot of rain and a full moon and king tides, all you can do is make sure people are safe. But it’s Mother Nature. I think most people understand that this is pretty much out of our control.”
Hollywood officials said they were unaware of floodwaters entering a private home, but five businesses reported damage to storefronts and inventory.
“The flooding observed by city crews has primarily been street-level flooding during the highest tides, including portions of A1A where conditions made the roadway impassable for standard vehicles,” a city spokeswoman said.
People who live in areas prone to tidal flooding should move their vehicles to higher ground before the tide peaks and avoid parking on low-lying streets known to flood, the Hollywood spokeswoman said. Hollywood encourages residents to use the city-operated parking garages on the barrier island. Residents can park there for free through 5 p.m. Tuesday.
Motorists should never attempt to drive through flooded roadways. Water might be deeper than it appears and can damage vehicles or cause them to stall. Residents should also avoid walking through floodwater.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has predicted king tides on at least 40 days this year, including Sept. 26 to Oct. 1; Oct. 7–13; Oct. 24–31; Nov. 5–11; Nov. 22–28; Dec. 24–25.
In addition to those dates, flooding can occur outside of official forecast windows if local tides rise higher due to rainfall, wind strength and direction, and high water tables.
“We can have minor coastal flooding any time of year,” said Fisher, the meteorologist. “If you have storm systems nearby or a strong front, that can cause elevated seas.”
But can we expect another bout of extreme flooding the next time we have a king tide?
“I doubt the next one will be this bad,” he said, “but it wouldn’t surprise me if we see moderate flooding in the October king tide flooding.”
Dan Kennedy, a Hollywood resident whose home sits at the corner of Monroe Street and the Broadwalk, says he isn’t worried.
The Broadwalk flooded in the central part of the beach near the Margaritaville resort, several blocks to the north of Kennedy’s house.
“Where we live, the beach is much wider and we have a higher elevation,” Kennedy said. “You could have pitched a tent and slept on the boardwalk and wouldn’t have gotten a drop of water on you. But central beach … got pummeled.”
Dania Beach Vice Mayor Marco Salvino said he was out of town. But he made sure to keep track of how things were going back home.
“I’ve been getting emails and photos from the city manager,” Salvino said. “I have a bike rental business on the beach in Hollywood. My business was not affected, but the Broadwalk was under water. And in Dania Beach, the water had run over into the parking lot by the pier. It went down when the tide went down.”
Susannah Bryan can be reached at sbryan@sunsentinel.com. Follow me on X @Susannah_Bryan