EcoWatch
Facebook 558k Twitter 222k Instagram 52k Subscribe Subscribe
  • Climate
  • Energy
  • Conservation
  • Food + Agriculture
  • Renewables
  • Oceans
  • Policy
  • Insights + Opinion
  • Go Solar Today
      • Top Companies By State
        • California Solar Companies
        • Texas Solar Companies
        • New York Solar Companies
        • Florida Solar Companies
        • See All States
      • Top Incentives By State
        • California Solar Incentives
        • Texas Solar Incentives
        • New York Solar Incentives
        • Florida Solar Incentives
        • See All States
      • Solar Panel Costs By State
        • Solar Panel Costs in California
        • Solar Panel Costs in Texas
        • Solar Panel Costs in New York
        • Solar Panel Costs in Florida
        • See All States
      • Value of Solar by State
        • Is Solar Worth It In California?
        • Is Solar Worth It in Texas?
        • Is Solar Worth It New York?
        • Is Solar Worth It In Florida?
        • See All States
      • Company Reviews
        • Tesla Solar Review
        • Sunrun Solar Review
        • SunPower Solar Review
        • Vivint Solar Review
        • See All Companies
      • Common Solar Questions
        • Can You Get Free Solar Panels?
        • Does Solar Increase Home Value?
        • What’re The Best Solar Batteries?
        • Can You Finance Solar?
        • Where To Buy Solar Panels?
        • Payback On Solar Panels?
      • Solar Resources
        • Interactive Solar Calculator
        • Federal Solar Tax Credit
        • Best Solar Panels For Most Homes
        • Tesla Solar Roof Review
        • Cheapest Solar Panels
      • Companies Compared
        • SunPower vs Tesla Solar
        • SunRun vs Tesla Solar
        • SunRun vs SunPower
        • SunPower vs Momentum Solar
        • SunPower vs ADT Solar
EcoWatch
  • Climate
  • Energy
  • Conservation
  • Food + Agriculture
  • Renewables
  • Oceans
  • Policy
  • Insights + Opinion
  • Go Solar Today
    • Go Solar Today
    • Top Companies By State
      • California Solar Companies
      • Texas Solar Companies
      • New York Solar Companies
      • Florida Solar Companies
      • See All States
    • Top Incentives By State
      • California Solar Incentives
      • Texas Solar Incentives
      • New York Solar Incentives
      • Florida Solar Incentives
      • See All States
    • Solar Panel Costs By State
      • Solar Panel Costs in California
      • Solar Panel Costs in Texas
      • Solar Panel Costs in New York
      • Solar Panel Costs in Florida
      • See All States
    • Value of Solar by State
      • Is Solar Worth It In California?
      • Is Solar Worth It in Texas?
      • Is Solar Worth It New York?
      • Is Solar Worth It In Florida?
      • See All States
    • Company Reviews
      • Tesla Solar Review
      • Sunrun Solar Review
      • SunPower Solar Review
      • Vivint Solar Review
      • See All Companies
    • Common Solar Questions
      • Can You Get Free Solar Panels?
      • Does Solar Increase Home Value?
      • What’re The Best Solar Batteries?
      • Can You Finance Solar?
      • Where To Buy Solar Panels?
      • Payback On Solar Panels?
    • Solar Resources
      • Interactive Solar Calculator
      • Federal Solar Tax Credit
      • Best Solar Panels For Most Homes
      • Tesla Solar Roof Review
      • Cheapest Solar Panels
    • Companies Compared
      • SunPower vs Tesla Solar
      • SunRun vs Tesla Solar
      • SunRun vs SunPower
      • SunPower vs Momentum Solar
      • SunPower vs ADT Solar

The best of EcoWatch right in your inbox. Sign up for our email newsletter!

    • About EcoWatch
    • Contact EcoWatch
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Learn About Solar Energy
    Facebook 558k Twitter 222k Instagram 52k
    EcoWatch
    • About EcoWatch
    • Contact EcoWatch
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Learn About Solar Energy
    Facebook 558k Twitter 222k Instagram 52k
    Home Climate

    More Than Two Feet of Rain in Ft. Lauderdale Causes Severe Flooding in ‘1-in-1,000 Year Event’

    By: Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
    Published: April 14, 2023
    Edited by Chris McDermott
    Facebook icon Twitter icon Pinterest icon Email icon
    People walk through a flooded neighborhood in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
    People walk through a flooded neighborhood in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on April 13, 2023. Joe Raedle / Getty Images
    Why you can trust us

    Founded in 2005 as an Ohio-based environmental newspaper, EcoWatch is a digital platform dedicated to publishing quality, science-based content on environmental issues, causes, and solutions.

    Facebook icon Twitter icon Pinterest icon Email icon

    South Florida was hit with a “1-in-1,000 year” deluge of rainfall this week as a series of storms pummeled the area, causing widespread flooding, stranded vehicles, closed schools and airport shut-downs.

    A record 25.91 inches of rain was measured at the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood airport, according to the National Weather Service’s preliminary report, falling in the 24 hour period leading up to Thursday morning.

    Ana Torres-Vazquez, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Miami, said a typical strong hurricane would produce 20 to 25 inches of rainfall over the course of more than one day, reported CNN.

    More From EcoWatch
    • Is Solar Worth It in Florida?
    • How Well Does Solar Hold Up in Extreme Weather?
    • The Best Solar Panels for Hot Climates

    “This amount of rain in a 24-hour period is incredibly rare for South Florida,” Torres-Vazquez said, describing the rainfall as a “1-in-1,000 year event, or greater,” as CNN reported.

    This means the chance of it happening in any given year is 0.1 percent.

    The average rainfall for all of April in Fort Lauderdale is three inches, and the city hasn’t seen 20 inches of rain in a month for almost 25 years.

    South Florida’s historic rainfall followed a low pressure system that developed in the Gulf of Mexico Wednesday, causing a warm front to move across southern Florida, reported The Guardian. This was followed by a series of slow-moving supercell thunderstorms.

    “The amount of rainfall is unprecedented,” Mayor Dean Trantalis said Thursday, as NBC News reported.

    Experts have predicted more extreme weather as the climate crisis wears on.

    According to the National Weather Service, another two to three inches of rain fell in Fort Lauderdale on Thursday, but after remaining closed for a second day, the city’s airport reopened Friday morning at 9 a.m.

    No deaths were reported during the storms, but 900 service and rescue calls were made to the Fort Lauderdale fire department, Trantalis said, and the city reported that about 600 people were moved to shelters.

    NBC Miami drone footage of its downtown area showed abandoned cars on dry streets after flood waters had receded.

    More than 18 inches of rain hit Hollywood, Florida, during the series of storms, while Dania Beach — located about five-and-a-half miles from Fort Lauderdale — saw more than 17 inches, according to the National Weather Service’s preliminary report.

    Florida Governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency for Broward County on Thursday, and the county government declared a local emergency for Fort Lauderdale, reported NBC News.

    Broward County Public Schools remained closed Friday.

    “Thus far, we have been able to assess preliminarily $2 million in damages to our schools,” said Valerie Wanza, acting chief of staff for the school district, as NBC News reported. “A lot of it is due to flooding.”

    Heavy rain from the historic downpours had stopped by Thursday night, but the Fort Lauderdale area remained under a flood warning until 8 a.m. Friday due to the many roads that remained submerged, the National Weather Service said.

    Subscribe to get exclusive updates in our daily newsletter!

      By signing up, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, and to receive electronic communications from EcoWatch Media Group, which may include marketing promotions, advertisements and sponsored content.

      Cristen Hemingway Jaynes

      Cristen is a writer of fiction and nonfiction. She holds a JD and an Ocean & Coastal Law Certificate from University of Oregon School of Law and an MA in Creative Writing from Birkbeck, University of London. She is the author of the short story collection The Smallest of Entryways, as well as the travel biography, Ernest’s Way: An International Journey Through Hemingway’s Life.
      Facebook icon Twitter icon Pinterest icon Email icon

      Read More

      Renewables Helped Prevent Blackouts on New England's Hottest Day This Summer
      Renewable energy sources, such as solar power and battery storage,
      By Paige Bennett
      20 States Sue Trump Administration for Slashing FEMA Disaster Mitigation Program
      A group of 20 states sued the Trump administration on
      By Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
      Extreme Weather Is Now Normal Weather in the UK: Met Office Report
      Extreme heat, excessive rainfall, ongoing droughts — these conditions are
      By Paige Bennett

      Subscribe to get exclusive updates in our daily newsletter!

        By signing up, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, and to receive electronic communications from EcoWatch Media Group, which may include marketing promotions, advertisements and sponsored content.

        Latest Articles

        • Renewables Helped Prevent Blackouts on New England’s Hottest Day This Summer
          by Paige Bennett
          July 18, 2025
        • South Korea Could Grant Bottlenose Dolphins off Jeju Island ‘Legal Personhood’ Status to Better Protect Them
          by Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
          July 17, 2025
        • 20 States Sue Trump Administration for Slashing FEMA Disaster Mitigation Program
          by Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
          July 16, 2025
        • Scientists Find First Evidence of Auditory Interaction Between Animals and Plants: Study
          by Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
          July 15, 2025
        • What Mountains Provide and Why They Need Protection
          by Olivia Rosane
          July 15, 2025
        • Extreme Weather Is Now Normal Weather in the UK: Met Office Report
          by Paige Bennett
          July 14, 2025
        • Climate Change Degrades Nutritional Value of Crops, Study Finds
          by Paige Bennett
          July 11, 2025
        • Millions of Tons of Tiny Plastic Particles Are Polluting the Ocean, Study Finds
          by Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
          July 10, 2025
        EcoWatch

        The best of EcoWatch right in your inbox. Sign up for our email newsletter!

          • Climate Climate
          • Animals Animals
          • Health + Wellness Health + Wellness
          • Insights + Opinion Insights + Opinion
          • Adventure Adventure
          • Oceans Oceans
          • Business Business
          • Solar Solar
          • About EcoWatch
          • Contact EcoWatch
          • EcoWatch Reviews
          • Terms of Use
          • Privacy Policy
          • Learn About Solar Energy
          • Learn About Deregulated Energy
          • EcoWatch UK
          Follow Us
          Facebook 558k
          Twitter 222k
          Instagram 52k
          Subscribe Subscribe

          Experts for a healthier planet and life.

          Mentioned by:
          Learn more
          • Privacy Policy
          • Terms of Use
          • Cookie Preferences
          • Do Not Sell My Information
          © 2025 EcoWatch. All Rights Reserved.

          Advertiser Disclosure

          Our editorial team is committed to creating independent and objective content focused on helping our readers make informed decisions. To help support these efforts we receive compensation from companies that advertise with us.

          The compensation we receive from these companies may impact how and where products appear on this site. This compensation does not influence the recommendations or advice our editorial team provides within our content. We do not include all companies, products or offers that may be available.