SOUTH TAMPA, Fla — The City of Tampa saw nearly 5 inches of rain Tuesday and close to 4 inches Wednesday creating chaos out on the roads and putting cars under water.
City officials said stormwater systems were overwhelmed by the downpour.
"I've seen cars literally underwater... I have a very small compact car so there's a lot of flooding I can't ride through. It's a mess," South Tampa resident Jamal Burton explained.
Rebecca Ranney sent us video showing major street flooding and cars driving through it in the Hyde Park area.
"We've had more than three inches, three and a half inches, within an hour in certain parts of the city. That kind of rain will inundate any of our stormwater systems. Our stormwater systems are not designed for that kind of rain,"
Vik Bhide, the Director of Mobility for the City of Tampa, said they are developing a watershed management plan citywide that considers the latest sea level rise data.
"We'll be modeling every basin within the city to understand what our future infrastructure needs are. As part of that effort, we're also looking at what policies do we need to put in place, and certainly development, particularly the location of development, as we grow, is going to be critical," Bhide explained.
He said this week's rain overwhelmed the current stormwater systems and that a change in weather patterns, which now creates a critical need to rethink development, is one major contributing factor to the excessive flooding.
"You can't build enough culverts. You can't build enough stormwater infrastructure to deal with what we saw yesterday. But what you can do is smart development," Councilman Alan Clendenin said.
Clendenin represents District 1. He said over-development is a concern across Tampa.
"We have done things specifically in some of these urban areas where we've divided lots. We've put too much on too little. The same thing I've been preaching since I've been here. I've seen this council do it, divide lots and approve these things where we're putting too much on too little and mother nature kicks back, and yesterday mother nature kicked back," Clendenin said.
Meanwhile, Bhide said there are plans in place, including upgrading stormwater systems and policies to be more conducive to current and future weather patterns, adding the system is not designed for instant drainage.
"We do need to invest more in paving and maintenance and upkeep of the system, rather than just putting in new systems in place and this is a transportation, storm, water, housing development, all-encompassing solution," Bhide said.
A state report says hundreds of frail elderly nursing home residents were stacked side by side, head to toe in a small church with no working air conditioning or refrigerator during Hurricane Helene.
