Sea level rise signs as king tides swamp coastal roads

Key Points:

• South Florida experienced significant coastal flooding this weekend due to a combination of higher-than-usual tides and weeks of heavy rain, leading to a coastal flood advisory and road closures, including a two-mile stretch of A1A in Fort Lauderdale.
• The flooding, driven by king tides associated with a full moon, broke recent records at Broward’s Port Everglades and Miami’s Virginia Key, with water levels about 2 feet above normal high tide, causing disruptions but no reports of water entering homes or businesses.
• Experts link the severity of the flooding to ongoing sea level rise caused by climate change, noting an 8-inch increase over the past 30 years and projections of an additional foot by 2050, which will likely make such events more frequent and severe.
• The king tide flooding is expected to continue through Monday with more flooding during high tides, but conditions should improve by the weekend; however, higher tides are anticipated again from October 9-11, with additional king tide periods later in the year.
• Meteorologists forecast little rain during the peak tide days, which may help reduce flooding impacts temporarily, but increased rainfall is expected mid-next week as tides return closer to normal levels.