Severe flooding in South Florida has shut down schools and the local airport, as some parts of Broward County saw upward of 20 inches of rain overnight, according to preliminary reports.
More than 300 flights out of Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport have been canceled on Thursday, as the airport says they will remain closed all day and will reopen Friday at 5 a.m. due to continued flooding and debris leftover from the storm.
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"This will allow airport staff to work to restore partial operations on one runway, providing current conditions do not worsen. Travelers should not come to the airport prior to checking with their airlines for updated flight status," the airport said in a travel alert late Thursday morning.
Significant portions of the runways were visibly underwater Thursday morning, preventing normal operations at the airport from resuming since they shut down Wednesday evening.
First look at flooding at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. Airport remains closed through at least noon today. pic.twitter.com/u1Ed1rpzVC
— WSVN 7 News (@wsvn) April 13, 2023
Broward Schools announced all public schools in the county were closed Thursday due to the inclement conditions.
Preliminary reports on the rainfall from the storm from the National Weather Service saw Fort Lauderdale getting 25.91 inches, Hollywood, Florida, getting 18.16, and 17.30 inches in Dania Beach.
The National Weather Service described Wednesday's storm as a "historic day of rainfall" as a flood watch remains in effect for Broward County. For much of Wednesday evening and early Thursday morning, the area was under a flash flood emergency, which is the NWS's most severe warning for flooding.
"After a historic day of rainfall across portions of South Florida that many of us will not soon forget, another potential wet day is ahead for today," the NWS said.
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"Even though overall coverage of [precipitation] is expected to be less, any further heavy rain in Broward and Miami-Dade will cause additional flooding problems, therefore the Flood Watch remains in effect through this evening," the forecast from the NWS added.
The city of Fort Lauderdale says several roads are "still impassable due to flooding" Thursday and asking for patience as crews begin to drain the excess water.