South Florida rain, flooding. What’s open? What’s closed?

This story was updated at 5:07 p.m.

With heavy rain causing major flooding in South Florida from Wednesday night, city and school officials warned residents to keep off the roadways and announced closings.

The system that dumped heavy rain overnight was still causing extreme weather in parts of our region on Thursday morning, combining with high tides to create dangerous conditions.

Broward College and Broward schools announced all classes and all school-related events were cancelled on Thursday, while Fort Lauderdale, still recovering from a major flooding event in April, remained on high alert.

In Miami-Dade, there were delays across "all modes" of public transport on Thursday morning, according to Mayor Daniella Levine Cava.

The National Weather Service issued a Flood Watch for all of Miami-Dade, along with the coastal/metro Broward and Palm Beach counties. Read the latest NWS advisory here.

Miami-Dade Public Schools, however, remain open Thursday.

Broward College

“Due to continued heavy rain and flooding overnight in Broward and Miami-Dade counties, Broward College will remain closed today, Thursday, November 16, 2023,” college officials announced on X, formerly Twitter. “This closure includes online classes, as well as all campuses and centers.” Read more here.

Broward County Public Schools

Broward County officials plan to reopen schools tomorrow after cleaning up from this week’s torrential rains.

District staff said a number of campuses are dealing with power outages, flood damage and downed trees. But schools Superintendent Peter Licata said it’s nothing that can’t be fixed in a matter of hours.

"Pompano Beach Middle has some flooding, but it also has some trees down, as well as Northside Elementary. Piper High’s got a parking lot issue of flooding, so does Northeast High. Western did have some rain inside their auditorium. They do have some flooding on their fields," Licata said.

As of noon Thursday, more than 80,000 customers were without power across South Florida.

In abundance of caution, the district announced it was closing schools on Thursday, Nov. 16. All after-school activities and evening classes are also canceled today, said Broward School officials in a statement to media.

For many in Broward, the flooding rains were a stressful reminder of the historic storm that inundated the area in April.

“BCPS thanks all its employees, especially our maintenance and facilities personnel, who will be canvassing schools to assess if any campuses experience water intrusions or other damages,” the statement said. “If make-up days are needed due to this closure, the District will work to communicate information to families as soon as possible.

BCPS will provide updates on its website and social media accounts on X, formerly Twitter, and Facebook. 

City of Fort Lauderdale

Fort Lauderdale continued to deal with minor flooding today after over a foot of rain fell on the coastal city this week.

The city deployed pump trucks to low lying neighborhoods to get rid of standing water. Fire rescue crews responded to 15 calls for service last night. That’s a far cry from the hundreds of calls from the April flooding, which caused widespread damage.

City facilities are closed today but are expected to open tomorrow.

City officials issued a flood watch today, which was due to remain in effect until 12 p.m., with another 2-4 inches of rain expected on Thursday afternoon combined with high tides.

"There are reports of power outages, mooring issues, road flooding, and wind damage across the area. The groundwater table is near saturation, which means additional rain may not be able to drain," read a statement from the city. The highest tides of the year were expected Thursday morning, which could exacerbate conditions.

"We urge drivers to remain off the roadways if possible and exercise extreme caution. Many traffic lights are currently down. Traffic engineering crews are working to restore function. There is also debris on various roadways," the statement added.

City offices will remain closed on Thursday. The city also announced that after-school programs were canceled for the day.

City officials reported eight to 10 inches of rain within a 48-hour period in several areas of the city, including the Edgewood, Tarpon, and Galt neighborhoods. They said pumps were deployed in the “vulnerable Edgewood and River Oaks neighborhoods to reduce water levels.”

Read more details here. 

Miami-Dade Public Schools

“(Miami-Dade County Public Schools) continues to monitor local weather conditions. All Miami-Dade County Public Schools remain OPEN tomorrow, November 16, 2023,” school officials posted on X account.

Miami-Dade Public Transport

"Due to historic rain fall in Miami-Dade County, all modes of transportation including Metrobus, Metromover, Metrorail and STS are experiencing delays. Please allow for extra travel time," read a message from Miami-Dade County's Department of Transportation & Public Works' account on X, formerly Twitter, shortly after 8 a.m. on Thursday.

Although normal service with "residual delays" had resumed on Metrorail by mid-morning, the Metromover was still down. Check Miami-Dade Transit's account for updates.

Miami Dade College

Classes at Miami Dade College's Padrón Campus were suspended until 1 p.m. Thursday "due to an area power outage," the institution announced. All other campuses remain open.

Monroe County

Courtesy

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Monroe County Public Information Office

In Monroe County, four parks in the Upper Keys are closed Thursday as debris blown around in Wednesday’s storm are being cleared from park pathways, according to the county.

Closures include:

• Old Settlers Park | Albury Blvd, Tavernier, FL 33070
• Friendship Park | 69 Hibiscus Ln, Key Largo, FL 33037
• Harry Harris Park | 50 E Beach Rd, Tavernier, FL 33070)
• Key Largo Park | Key Largo, FL

All parks will be reopened Friday with the exception of Friendship Park and Key Largo Community Park. The Upper Keys remain under a coastal flood advisory through the rest of Thursday, according to the National Weather Service’s Key West Office.

Send any updates and press releases on school closings and updates and press releases on city-related activities to news@wlrnnews.org