Rainy weather causes severe flooding across South Florida, delays at MIA

HIALEAH, FLA. (WSVN) - The skies opened up across South Florida, Friday, causing flooding in different parts of Miami-Dade County and flight delays and cancellations at Miami International Airport.

The National Weather Service said the rainy season officially started on May 29. Throughout the day, live radars continued to pick up pockets of moderate to heavy rainfall across Miami-Dade, Broward and Monroe counties.

At around 6 p.m., heavy rain continued to make its way through Naranja and Cutler Bay in deep Southern Miami-Dade. Radars also picked up copious downpours in Westchester and Kendale Lakes as well as over the Florida Turnpike, near those neighborhoods, all the way to the Palmetto Expressway.

Low-lying areas caused some high stress for drivers. 7News cameras captured cars stuck in the road in Doral.

Vehicles stalled and became stuck after a downpour at the intersection of Northwest Seventh Street and 62nd Avenue, in Northwest Miami-Dade.

“My car slipped on water and broke down,” said one driver.

Drivers said they underestimated how much rain came down so quickly. “Yeah, [I’ve been waiting] over an hour now. I’ve been [driving] from 72nd to 62nd [avenues],” said area resident Tamara Ali.

Miami-Dade Fire Rescue crews were able to help some people stuck in their cars and even safely retrieved a toddler stuck inside one of the cars.

“It just started flooding like crazy,” said the child’s mother.

“Many of the folks were caught off guard as they were coming through, thought they could come with their car. They ended up getting stranded,” said Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Capt. Abel Fernandez. “We had to go in and help them out. We’re waiting for several tow trucks to pull them out.”

In Hialeah, the heavy downpours caused parts of a roof at an apartment complex to collapse, injuring a 10-month-old boy.

“The child was evaluated and transported to Ryder Trauma [Center] just for precautionary reasons,” said Hialeah Fire Capt. David Rodriguez.

The landlord and fire officials said the roof of the building was undergoing renovations and was vulnerable in spots.

Severe flooding across South Florida made for some frustrated drivers. “There’s no order here at all,” said one woman.

7News cameras captured a similar scene in Miami’s Brickell neighborhood, where drivers faced heavy flooding at Southwest First Avenue, between Ninth and 10th streets.

“Turn your car around. Do not assume that you can navigate through it. You’re gonna get stuck,” said Fernandez.

The weather-related problems began during the early rush-hour commute, Friday morning. Cameras captured bumper-to-bumper traffic along Interstate 95, near the Northwest 62nd Street exit.

As the day progressed, rainfall caused visibility problems for drivers in Miami Gardens. Slick roads also slowed down motorists in Miami Shores.

The flooding began to clear up, Friday evening. However, the rain began to pick up again.

“I’ve had a terrible day, terrible day for a Friday,” said one woman stuck in the rain.

Friday night, Miami-Dade and Monroe counties looked mostly dry on the radar. However, rain continued to come down in Broward right along the coast and over rural areas along Interstate 75.

Miami International Airport reported more than five inches of rain, nearly beating a 1930 record.

According to an MIA spokesperson, there were at least 153 delays and 34 cancellations, all weather-related, Friday.

Meanwhile, at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, the average departing flight is sitting at roughly a two-hour delay, according to the website Flight Aware.

Radars also picked up rain activity in Dania Beach, all the way west to Pembroke Pines. Heavy rainfall was also reported in Margate, Coral Springs and Parkland.

For more specific details on affected flights, please reach out to your airline.

The rain also caused power outages in both Miami-Dade and Broward counties. As of 6 p.m., Friday, Miami-Dade had reported 2,385 outages, while Broward had 30.

The infant injured in Hialeah remains at Ryder Trauma Center and is expected to be released sometime this weekend.

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