Flash Flood in Florida, September 27 to 29, 1998

Heavy rains from Hurricane Georges caused widespread flooding across the county. The heavy rains began along the border with Alabama and spread east across the county. Rainfall estimates were between twenty and thirty inches across the county. Schools were closed for three days because of the flood damage done to secondary roads. Many dirt roads in the rural parts of the county were completely washed away. Many bridges in the county were undermined by the high water and had to be closed. I-10 was closed for awhile because of high water near the Alabama and Florida line. The NOAA Weather Radio was knocked off the air for more than a day as the building housing the radio equipment had two feet of water in it and shorted out the transmitter. The heavy rains also caused extensive river flooding in the county. The Perdido River crested at 26.3 feet, which was above the record of 23.94 feet. The Escambia River also recorded near record levels. The river crested at 23.9 feet on September 30. This was almost as high as the record flood of 24.2 feet in March of this year.