34 structures damaged by flooding, more rain on the way

Palm Coast Observer
News

A total of 34 structures and nine cars have been reported damaged by flooding, and more rain is on the way: Another 2-3 inches is predicted today, and yet another 2-3 inches could fall Tuesday.

So far, none of the storm damage has been structural or led to evacuations, county officials said Monday afternoon. In Palm Coast, only Hargrove Grade and Otis Hunter Road remained closed as of 4:15 p.m., and officials said the city’s draining systems should be able to handle the predicted 2-3 inches.

“We’ve been assured by public works by both the county and city of Palm Coast that the systems can handle the 2-3 inches that we’re expecting over the next hour to two,” Flagler County Emergency Services Director Kevin Guthrie said. But, he said, “if the system drops 9 inches over the top of us, we will stall out. We can’t handle 9 inches. … There’s no system in the U.S. that can handle 9 inches of rain in one hour.”

Most of the damage has been in the B- and W-sections, with a few reports from the F- and L-sections, Flagler County Emergency Planning Director Jennifer Stagg said.

A number of homes on Longfellow were inundated, she said, and “We did have a tree fall on a vehicle and total out the vehicle, but that was the closest we had to structural” damage, she said. “We have had reports of damage to docks and things like gazebos, but not actual homes.”

The Emergency Operations Center will be open through 7 p.m. or 8 p.m. Monday as staff members answer calls from residents reporting damage — call 313-4200 — and then will close and reopen at 8 a.m. Tuesday.

The city of Palm Coast has free emergency sandbags and a sand station at the Public Works yard at 1 Wellfield Grade, Palm Coast.

An earlier version of this story misstated the number of structures damaged by flooding. The correct number is 34.

BOX: EARLIER STORM COVERAGE

6:30 P.M. SATURDAY, SEPT. 27

Flagler County still had some isolated flooding as of 5:15 p.m. Saturday, according to a Flagler County Sheriff’s Office news release, and will remain under a flood watch until 8 p.m. Saturday.

The National Weather Service expects rains to continue into Monday and Tuesday, but coming storms aren’t expected to be as heavy as the ones that flooded Palm Coast streets Friday.

Official rain totals in Flagler County over the past 24 hours are between 5 and 10 inches, according to the National Weather Service. A few areas received more than 11 inches.

Officials have asked residents to report impassable roads by calling 313-4911.

ROAD CLOSURES AND HAZARDS

As of 6:30 p.m. Saturday, road closures included:
•Palm Coast: Bird of Paradise and all streets in that vicinity
•Daytona North: Forest Park-Mahogany to Clove
•Flagler County: Hargrove Grade-Otis Stone to Hargrove at the railroad tracks; Otis Stone Hunter from US Highway 1 to Main Street

Roads that were open but have various hazards include:
Palm Coast:
•U.S. Highway 1 at Matanzas Woods Boulevard (encroaching travel lane)
•Hargrove Grade at Industry Drive (encroaching travel lane)
•Laramie, Matanzas to Belle Terre (water over road)
•Burroughs Drive, Belle Terre to Bird of Paradise (water over road)
•Butternut, Weidner (at Weiss), and Fellow Place (water over road on all three) •Entrance to Princess Place (water over road)
•Hammock: Marineland Acres (water over road)
Flagler Beach:
•A1A from State Road 100 to North 12th and from State Road 100 to South 17th (encroaching travel lane)
Daytona North:
•Walnut, Candleberry, Elder, Rosewood, Hickory and Honeytree – all south of Mahogany (12-18 inches of water)
•Clove and Grove (12-18 inches of water)
Flagler County:
•County Road 90 – west of County Road 305 (encroaching travel lane)
Flagler County: Hickory and Fir – at Walnut (washout)

1:40 P.M. SATURDAY, SEPT. 27:

County officials checking on flood damage have received reports of six structures with minor damage, according to a Flagler County Sheriff’s Office news release, and law enforcement officers are receiving reports of downed trees and of vehicles abandoned on flooded roads.

Officials have urged residents to avoid activities that produce wasterwater, like doing laundry and irrigation, to prevent that wastewater from backing into the city.

They have asked residents not to drive on flooded streets, to report damage from the storms to the Flagler County Emergency Operations Center at 313-4200, and to report other concerns and non-emergencies to 313-4911.

Palm Coast is using used tank trucks to pump down the city’s wastewater collection stations, which were inundated with storm water overnight, and the city’s public works crews are cleaning out catch basins.

The city of Palm Coast has free emergency sandbags and a sand station at the Public Works yard at 1 Wellfield Grade, Palm Coast. Residents who already have their own sandbags can get sand for them at stations at Holland Park, Indian Trails Sports Complex and Seminole Woods Park, according to the release.

Flagler County will remain under a flood watch until 8 p.m. Saturday.

Officials will post updates to palmcoastgov.com, flagleremergency.com, flaglercounty.org and facebook.com/flaglercounty.sheriffsoffice, according to the news release.

Roads Closures:
•Palm Coast: Bird of Paradise and all streets in that vicinity
•Daytona North: Forest Park-Mahogany to Clove
•Flagler County: Hargrove Grade-Otis Stone to Hargrove at the railroad tracks; Otis Stone Hunter from US Highway 1 to Main Street
Rainfall:

The National Weather Service has received reports of several areas of the county which have received record-setting rainfall, including:
•Wellfield Grade Utility Yard – City of Palm Coast reported: 15 inches
•The “B” section of Palm Coast: 9.68 inches
•The “W” section of Palm Coast: 9 inches

Safety steps from Flagler County Emergency Management:
•Don't drive on or through flooded streets. Drivers should turn around and find another route.
•If flooding occurs, get to higher ground. Avoid areas already flooded, especially if the water is flowing fast.
•Do not walk through standing water or flowing streams. All floodwater could be contaminated.
•Flash floods can develop offshore quickly, so pay close attention to changing weather.
•Be especially cautious at night, when it’s harder to recognize flood dangers.
•If you hear thunder, you are within striking distance of lightning. Seek shelter immediately and
remain there at least 30 minutes after the last rumble of thunder.

12:30 P.M. SATURDAY, SEPT. 27:

Heavy rains that dropped as much as 15 inches of water on Palm Coast as of Saturday morning caused road closures and stranded about half a dozen drivers in their cars, according to Flagler County Emergency Management officials. And more is expected: the National Weather Service issued a flood warning for
Flagler County at about 11:20 Saturday that is in effect until 1:15 p.m. Saturday.

Flagler County Emergency Management has asked anyone whose property has been damaged to call the Emergency Operations Center at 313-4200.

“This morning everything had receded in the Palm Coast area. However, because of the rain we’re getting right now, we’re staring to see inundations again,” Flagler County Emergency Management Chief Kevin Guthrie said at about noon Saturday. “There’s a band of showers that’s right along the Palm Coast Parkway corridor dropping a lot of rain — it could drop 2-3 inches — and we are starting to experience problems in the B-section, and around the L-section mains.”

Residents who need emergency sandbags to keep water out of their homes may pick up and bag their own sand bags at 1 Wellfield Grade in Palm Coast. Those bags are for emergency — not precautionary — use, Guthrie said.

Emergency management officials have asked residents not to drive into areas where the water covers the roadway, because it can be impossible to gauge its depth from a car. Cars can also create a wake that pushes floodwater into nearby buildings, or they can cut out and become stranded.

“We probably had a half dozen or more cars that started driving down the roadways, and they became stranded and we had to send crews out to rescue them,” Guthrie said.

Meanwhile, the Palm Coast Fire Department is assessing flooded areas, Palm Coast Utilities is dealing with infiltration into the sewer system and monitoring the lift, and the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office is helping with traffic control.

In western Flagler County, road and bridge crews were working on clearing washouts Saturday morning, Guthrie said. Flagler County Emergency Management is working on compiling an updated list of washouts in the Daytona North area, but as of late Friday night, there were washouts on Hickory Street, Walnut Avenue and Fir Street.