Oh, no, not again!
It’s totally understandable if people in Fort Lauderdale and surrounding communities muttered that to themselves as the skies opened and they were swamped by yet another deluge of rain across the region.
This wasn’t nearly as bad as the record rainfall of last April — the effects of which are still being seen and felt, months later — but this soaking was still severe enough that it forced the closings of schools, courts and some city halls. Traffic lights went dark. Parking lots flooded. Some areas got a foot of water overnight.
This was a dangerous November no-name storm with high wind warnings and flood watches stretching from the Keys to Palm Beach.
Lauderdale-By-the-Sea reportedly got the worst of it this time, with 13.31 inches of water, the Sun Sentinel reported, through a combination of intense rain and rush-hour king tides. Some surrounding cities got 12 inches or more. Farther up the coast, Delray Beach got “only” about six inches of rain.
Mesmerizing radar loop of the storm strengthening overnight over the warm waters of South Florida. Winds gusted to 86mph near Key Largo. 75mph in Miami Beach and Dania Beach. More than 80,000 FPL customers still without power this morning. #Miami #FLwx pic.twitter.com/U7ObIDoiDZ
— Brandon Orr (@BrandonOrrWPLG) November 16, 2023
Wetter Fort Lauderdale
Broward was once again the epicenter of a big storm. The place that’s often marketed to the world as “Greater Fort Lauderdale” is increasingly Wetter Fort Lauderdale.
Flat, overdeveloped, difficult to drain and honeycombed by hundreds of canals, Broward is a place where there’s nowhere for all that water to go.
At a time like this, much more so than usual, everybody’s talking about the weather. That’s a good thing, because we all know that climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of storms.
Anybody with an iPhone can become an amateur Jim Cantore, the aggressively storm-chasing Weather Channel anchor, venturing out to take pictures despite pleas from local officials to stay home. (We hear the warnings, but we can’t resist watching the video).
The timing of these super-soakers is never convenient, and this one was no exception.
Making the right call
Broward County closed all schools Thursday, but the announcement didn’t reach people until close to 10 p.m. Wednesday. That was late enough so that some people surely did not receive it, but it was the right call. Safety first, always.
LIVE: Broward County Public Schools is holding a press conference to provide a district-wide update following Wednesday’s inclement weather. Latest info: https://t.co/lYlvnULTqs
https://t.co/lfBLQK1IPb— WSVN 7 News (@wsvn) November 16, 2023
This storm was an early test of Superintendent Peter Licata’s ability to react — not so much under fire as under water — since he began work in June. He appeared cool, calm and decisive, and to his credit, he acknowledged that he wished the no-school announcement could have come a bit sooner.
Most importantly, Licata was out in front of the TV cameras, fielding questions. In any crisis, timely and accurate communication is paramount.
“We decided to make a decision for the safety of children and our staff,” the superintendent said at a press conference on Thursday, with School Board Chairwoman Lori Alhadeff alongside him. “We know that some areas don’t flood, but a lot of areas do … We don’t want to put buses out on the roads. We don’t want children waiting out in the rain.”
Closing schools on such short notice can never be done lightly because it is highly disruptive to tens of thousands of families who suddenly face child care challenges they never anticipated. It’s impossible to only close schools in the areas with the worst flooding.
The nation’s sixth-largest school district is also the county’s largest employer and reaches into every one of the 31 cities and towns in Broward County.
In a crisis moment in this place, where people cannot often tell who’s in charge, the Broward superintendent must temporarily be a mayor, meteorologist and CEO of an enormous enterprise. It is why School Board Chairman Allen Zeman was right when he said the job of superintendent is Broward’s most important public office.
As for the water, it is the essential ingredient of life in this part of the world. It’s obviously what draws so many people to Fort Lauderdale and beyond.
Water. We look at it (and never get tired of doing it). We swim in it. We boat in it. We drive in it. We even have to boil it sometimes, unfortunately. But it’s with us now more than ever, and it looks like it always will be.
The Sun Sentinel Editorial Board consists of Editorial Page Editor Steve Bousquet, Deputy Editorial Page Editor Dan Sweeney, editorial writer Martin Dyckman and Editor-in-Chief Julie Anderson. Editorials are the opinion of the Board and written by one of its members or a designee. To contact us, email at letters@sun-sentinel.com.