Miami Beach officials say the new water pumps across some of the most flood prone areas of the city are working as the annual “King Tide” arrived Tuesday.
Still, Fifth Street and Alton Road flooded this morning due to the high tides, which wasn’t a surprise to residents who have been through the King Tides in the past.
“It was so flooded that I have a BMW, which is fairly high, and I was almost floating and there were several other cars that were stuck just behind Bay Road here,” said Andres Otero.
But, unlike in years past, by mid-morning, the flood waters at Fifth and Alton was gone. Miami Beach engineers said the water receded because they fixed a device called an outflow cap. Up the street at 10th and Alton, which is usually inundated by King Tide, there was a construction mess, but no flood waters.
City officials said new pumps at 10th and West Avenue, at 14th and West Avenue, and portable pumps all across the area are helping stem the tide.
“You have to start with the first step, and we have taken that first step and we are seeing improvement,” said Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine.
Mayor Levine said the city plans on eventually installing more than 50 pumps to help deal with flood waters. But for now, it has spent $15 million on the most flood-prone areas in the city.
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“There will be many battles along the way,” Levine said. “There’s no overnight fix, but we know what we’re doing; we’re moving forward.”
Residents are also taking the annual flooding from the tide in stride whether it’s by wearing knee-high wading boots, or simply moving their cars to a higher ground.
“My car is on a high level in the garage,” said Karen Scala. “I’ve had friends lose cars down here. So that’s what I’m most nervous about.”
