Flash Flood in Florida, October 9, 2008

Name: Flash Flood in Florida, October 9, 2008
Start: 2008-10-09T07:30
End: 2008-10-09T11:00
Location: Florida

October 9, 2008 · NWS MFL · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Southerly surface winds ahead of a cold front over north Florida, in combination with a mid-level shortwave trough moving through the area, caused heavy rains and flooding over parts of southeast Florida.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $10,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 1

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS MFL wrote it up.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Miami, FL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Oct 9, 3:13 AM EST, 4 hours 17 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Oct 9, 3:13 AM EST, 4 hours 17 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MIAMI FL
413 AM EDT THU OCT 9 2008

.SHORT TERM...TODAY THROUGH SATURDAY...SFC LOW OVER SE U.S. WITH
CDFNT ACROSS FL PANHANDLE WILL MOVE EAST WITH THE FRONT MAKING IT AS
FAR SOUTH AS CENTRAL FLORIDA AND DISSIPATING BY FRIDAY.
MEANWHILE...LOW LVL WIND FLOW WILL SHIFT TO MORE SOUTHERLY ACROSS
MAINLAND S. FL TODAY AND TONIGHT ADVECTING LOW LVL MOISTURE OVER
THE LOCAL AREA. UPPER LVL DIFFLUENCE ASSOCIATED WITH THE SORT WAVE
OVER SE U.S. AND SOUTHWESTERLY STEERING FLOW ALOFT WILL LEAD TO
MOST AFTERNOON SHWRS/TSTMS DEVELOPING OVER INLAND AREAS AND THEN
SPREADING NEWD TOWARD LAKE OKEECHOBEE REGION.

A MORE SE TO E FLOW IS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP FRIDAY AS THE FRONT
WASHES OUT AND A SFC RIDGE BEGINS TO BUILD OVER THE MID-ATLANTIC
REGION. THE POLAR JET WILL LIFT NORTH RESULTING IN THE SHORT WAVE
LOOSING SUPPORT AND BECOMING A CUTOFF LOW JUST OFF THE CAROLINAS.
THIS LOW WILL THEN BE FORCED TO MOVE SW AND DISSIPATE THROUGH
SATURDAY AS A M/U LVL RIDGE BUILDS TO WEST AND NORTH OF THE LOW.
WHAT WILL THIS DO? WELL, WL KEEP THE LOCAL AREA UNDER UNSTABLE
CONDITIONS THROUGH THIS PERIOD. WITH DIURNAL HEATING AND SEA/LAKE
BREEZES BEING ENOUGH TO INITIATE CONVECTIVE ACTIVITY. AS THE
SFC RIDGE BUILDS OVER THE MID-ATLANTIC...SO WILL THE EASTERLY
WINDS INCREASE OVER THE LOCAL AREA RESULTING IN INCREASED LOW LVL
CONVERGENCE...ESPECIALLY OVER EASTERN SECTIONS SATURDAY, SO
DECIDED TO KEEP HIGH SCT POPS OVER ERN AREAS WITH SLIGHTLY LOWER
POPS WEST COAST.

&&

.LONG TERM...SUNDAY THROUGH THURSDAY...A LARGE AMPLITUDE M/U LVL
RIDGE WILL BUILD ACROSS THE GULF OF MEX/SRN U.S. AND THAT WILL
TEND TO SUPPRESS, TO A CERTAIN DEGREE, PRECIPITATION ACROSS SOUTH
FLORIDA. REMEMBER THE SFC RIDGE MENTIONED ABOVE? IT WILL CONTINUE
TO BUILD OVER THE MID-ATLANTIC REGION AND SO THE PRESSURE GRADIENT
WILL GET TIGHTER OVER THE PENINSULA. SO LOW LVL CONVERGENCE WILL
STILL PLAY A ROLE IN THE PRECIPITATION FORECAST, ESPECIALLY SUNDAY
THROUGH TUESDAY WHEN THE UPPER RIDGE IS NOT YET WELL ESTABLISHED. SO
WILL STILL KEEP LOW SCT POPS TO ACCOUNT FOR THIS. HOWEVER, STRONGER
SUBSIDENCE AS THE UPPER RIDGE CONTINUES TO BUILD WL KEEP THE LOCAL
AREA MOSTLY FREE OF PRECIP WED AND THU. BREEZY CONDITIONS SHOULD
AFFECT THE EASTERN AREAS SUNDAY THROUGH MID-WEEK.

.MARINE...SOUTHERLY WINDS TODAY WILL SHIFT TO SE AND THEN EAST AND
REMAIN AT 15 KTS OR LESS THROUGH SATURDAY AS THE RIDGE BUILDS
NORTH OF THE AREA. HOWEVER, AS THE RIDGE CONTINUES TO BUILD, E/NE
WINDS SHOULD INCREASE TO AROUND 20 KTS WITH SEAS BUILDING RAPIDLY
SUNDAY THROUGH MONDAY.

&&

.FIRE WEATHER...NO PROBLEMS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

&&

.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
WEST PALM BEACH  87  75  87  76 / 40 20 40 30
FORT LAUDERDALE  87  77  87  76 / 40 20 40 30
MIAMI            88  77  88  76 / 40 20 40 30
NAPLES           89  74  89  74 / 40 20 40 20

&&

.MFL WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
FL...NONE.
AM...NONE.
GM...NONE.
&&

SHORT TERM/LONG TERM/MARINE/FIRE...47/RGH
AVIATION...15/JR

Hazardous weather outlook, Oct 9, 2:51 AM EST, 4 hours 39 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR SOUTH FLORIDA
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MIAMI FL
351 AM EDT THU OCT 9 2008

FLZ063-066>075-168-172>174-092300-
GLADES-HENDRY-INLAND PALM BEACH-METRO PALM BEACH-COASTAL COLLIER-
INLAND COLLIER-INLAND BROWARD-METRO BROWARD-INLAND MIAMI DADE-
METRO MIAMI DADE-MAINLAND MONROE-COASTAL PALM BEACH-
COASTAL BROWARD-COASTAL MIAMI DADE-FAR SOUTH MIAMI DADE-
351 AM EDT THU OCT 9 2008

...SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS MAINLY INTERIOR AND NORTH...
...MODERATE RISK OF RIP CURRENTS ATLANTIC BEACHES...

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTH FLORIDA.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

THUNDERSTORMS: SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE ACROSS
MOST OF SOUTH FLORIDA TODAY. LIGHTNING STRIKES, GUSTY WINDS AND
LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN WILL BE THE MAIN HAZARDS FROM THE STORMS.

RIP CURRENTS: EASTERLY WINDS AROUND 10 MPH WILL LEAD TO A
MODERATE RISK OF RIP CURRENTS AT THE BEACHES OF PALM BEACH,
BROWARD AND MIAMI DADE COUNTIES TODAY.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY

SCATTERED MAINLY AFTERNOON THUNDERSTORMS CAN BE EXPECTED THROUGH
THE PERIOD. THE PRIMARY IMPACTS FROM THE STORMS WILL BE OCCASIONAL
LIGHTNING STRIKES.

EASTERLY WINDS CAN BE EXPECTED THROUGH MUCH OF THE PERIOD,
CONTINUING THE RISK OF RIP CURRENT DEVELOPMENT ALONG THE ATLANTIC
BEACHES.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED.

FOR MORE INFORMATION...VISIT THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN
MIAMI WEBSITE AT WWW.WEATHER.GOV/MIAMI.

The radar

The Miami radar (KAMX), 46 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 12:29 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Miami-Dade

When: October 9, 7:30 AM EST to 11:00 AM EST
Where: Miami-Dade County, 0.4 mi NW of Ojus to 0.76 mi E of Ojus
Cause: Heavy Rain
Property damage: $10,000
Reported by: Broadcast Media
Coordinates: 25.953, -80.155

Heavy rains over a period of 4 hours caused significant ponding of water and flooding along the Biscayne Boulevard corridor in North Miami Beach and Aventura. Significant flooding was reported from NE 150 Street north to NE 186 Street. Water entered a body shop in Aventura where a dozen cars and the office were inundated by over a foot of water. Water also entered county buses along Biscayne Boulevard in North Miami Beach. Poor drainage caused by clogged drains contributed to the flooding.

What these are

Flash Flood: Flooding that begins within six hours of the rain that causes it, or of a dam or levee failure or ice jam release, often with deadly speed.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Florida in 2008 Every state in 2008 This day in weather history Warnings in Florida, October 2008

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 137082.