King tides threaten flooding this weekend. South Florida prepares to fend off the water
King tides are peaking this weekend, threatening to flood vulnerable areas as some cities prepare to fend off the encroaching sea.
While 2018’s highest tides of the year did not live up to the hype, king tides have been known to close roads, swamp parks and damage property.
With fluctuating weather conditions and water temperatures, it’s hard to say just how high the water will reach and tides have been running almost a foot higher than NOAA projections, said Brian McNoldy, a weather researcher at the University of Miami. But these tides will probably be the biggest of 2019.
Saturday morning around 9 a.m. both Miami and Miami Beach will encounter a high tide well over three feet above average low water levels, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). High tide will also hit three foot-plus by 10 a.m. Sunday and 11 a.m. Monday before easing down next week. King tides typically occur during new or full moons when gravitational pull is at its strongest, according to NOAA.
Ten percent of roads in Miami Beach could face flooding, said Roy Coley, the city’s director of Public Works. Coley is keeping an eye on Upper North Bay, Indian Creek and Alton road, all of which could be swamped due to drainage concerns. The city issued a warning to residents earlier this week.
To prepare, Miami Beach has set up 14 temporary pumping stations in the lowest areas of the city to control potential flooding.
“We believe the temporary pumps will adequately provide the protection to keep the roads open and there won’t be any more drastic measures needed,” Coley said.
The City of Miami has also taken precautions and brought in two extra pumps — one in Coconut Grove and another near 79th street — to complement its 13 permanent pump stations.
The areas around Shorecrest, Fairview and Jose Marti park are the most likely candidates to become unwanted urban wading pools this weekend, said Alan Dodd, Miami’s director of the Department of Resilience & Public Works.
Despite possible flooding, things should be under control, Dodd assured, and stand-by crews and quick dams will be ready if needed.
“I do not think there is any place in the city that will be flooded to the point that people will be unable to pass through it,” Dodd said.
The city of Miami has installed 38 new tidal valves to prevent backflow up storm drains, and more are being added every month. Of the nearly 500 stormwater discharge points around the city, close to 400 can be impacted by high tides, Dodd said. The city is working to install tidal valves in the most impacted drains.
In preparation for hurricane season and king tides, Dodd said city crews have been cleaning out debris from stormwater systems to ensure that maximum drainage capacity can be reached.
Miami Beach has an ace up its sleeve in case of unexpected flooding— four “vacuum trucks” that can each suck up to 2000 gallons of water at a time, Coley said. A lesson from the record high tides of 2015, the $400,000 trucks will be on call through the weekend.
In the long run, Coley said the city will need more than vacuum trucks to protect it from flooding. In the next forty years, sea levels in the area is predicted to rise nearly two feet according to the Southeast Florida Regional Climate Change Compact.
King tide increases will be even greater than the average sea level and the city is taking this into account, Coley said. Miami Beach is in the process of elevating its roads based in part on the future reach of king tides.
In the coming decades, this weekend’s tides will be nothing unusual.
“What we see as the highest tide now, that’s going to get more and more common,” McNoldy said. “There will be a point where our normal high tide will flood roads.”
This story was originally published September 27, 2019 at 7:00 AM.