Sandy Leaves Wet, Mess On Ft. Lauderdale Beach
FT. LAUDERDALE (CBS4) - Fort Lauderdale Beach was dealing with flooding on A1A and in low-lying areas Sunday evening due to storm surge from Hurricane Sandy, high winds, and seasonal high tides.
The rising tide started spilling over sand barriers set up along the beach around 5:45 pm. The peak of high tide was expected between 8:15 and 9:00 pm Sunday.
"A1A remains shut down from north of Sunrise Blvd. to Bayshore," Fort Lauderdale Police Det. Deanna Garcia said.
Det. Garcia added the road would likely remain closed Monday.
Businesses along A1A were preparing for the rising water with sand bags filled with sand washed ashore by the tide.
"Storms bringing it for us, we're going to use it," Jeff Boada said.
Boada works at Primanti Bros. Restaurant. It's open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
"We've been dealing with flooding in the restaurant," Boada said. "Plus the streets have been flooded with sand, all kinds of other debris."
City crews have been working with the Department of Transportation to clear the streets, but the water and sand keep coming back.
While Primanti Bros. Restuarant has remained open, the shop next door had to close for several hours Saturday and Sunday.
"Hurricanes and stuff like this, we have to take it in," said business owner Isaac Cohen. "It's part of the business. We had a loss. But we'll manage."
Cohen said the water was about a foot high when he arrived at the store at 8:30 Sunday morning. He cleaned his store and opened several hours later.
Lifeguards were busy keeping tabs on swimmers and surfers Sunday, but for the most part, many tourists decided to play it safe.
"I didn't expect the waves so big," Kostntin Volkov said.
Volkov is visiting Fort Lauderdale from Russia.
"I wanted to swim a little, but I didn't have any chance," he said.
That was a smart move considering the closure of A1A means it will also take emergency personnel longer to respond to the beach. They're using alternate modes of transportation, like ATVs, to access the beach, Det. Garcia said.
The Broward County Emergency Operations Center is partially activated in order to have resources available in case of emergency, according to Det. Garcia.
Sanitation services, including garbage pick-up, are canceled Monday in the affected areas.
The American Red Cross South Florida Region was providing food and water to residents in 60 homes along A1A who are confined to their homes due to street flooding.
