King tides peak in South Florida this week. Watch out for swamped roads
Fall in South Florida is not marked by changing leaves, but by rising tides.
The annual highest tides of the year, known as king tides, naturally occur in the Fall every year. But with climate change elevating sea levels globally, they’ve gotten more severe in recent years.
Now, during these events, it’s common to see roads and parks submerged even on perfectly sunny days. This weekend was not perfectly sunny, and more rain is expected, so there’s likely to be even more flooding than usual in the next few days.
Over the weekend, social media videos showed water completely covering streets, creeping into front yards and parking lots. Bayfront Marina was so flooded that the benches of picnic tables were only just above the rising waters. Seawalls were overtopped in sections along Fort Lauderdale’s Riverwalk. Diners at waterfront tables at restaurants along the Miami River had water lapping at their feet.
The Miami office of the National Weather Service said South Florida’s coast is under a moderate flood warning Monday through Wednesday — when the tides are expected to be highest.
READ MORE: King tides show South Florida a watery climate change future
“A Coastal Flood Advisory is currently in effect for the Atlantic Coast and will likely be extended into the middle of next week,” the office said.
There’s also a 50% chance of rain on Monday and 60% chance of rain on Tuesday, sure to add to the water already backed up in the street.
According to the South Florida Water Management District’s weekly tidal forecast, the tides at Virginia Key and Port Everglades are expected to cross the moderate flooding threshold Monday through Thursday.
That means that high tides could be more than a foot higher than normal. The hours leading up to those high tides could see flooding too, with levels dropping lowest during low tide.
READ MORE: A guide protecting your home from flooding
Here are NWS’s predictions for high tides for the next few days:
Port Everglades
8:05 AM Monday
8:21 PM Monday
8:54 AM Tuesday
9:06 PM Tuesday
Virginia Key
8:54 AM Monday
9:09 PM Monday
9:43 AM Tuesday
9:54 PM Tuesday
This story was originally published October 6, 2025 at 10:43 AM.
