The full moon has brought king tides and flooding to South Florida. AccuWeather's Leslie Hudson talks to city officials about how they handle the expected flooding.
00:00Millions of Americans from Florida to the Mid-Atlantic are bracing for more coastal flooding as king tides along with this month's super moon and stubborn onshore winds drive water inland.
00:10All right, AccuWeathers, Leslie Hudson is live in Miami, Florida with what to expect over the next couple of days and what king tide really, really means.
00:19Good morning, Leslie.
00:23Hey, good morning to you, Bernie.
00:25Yeah, I am here in the Brickell area, a very popular destination in Miami, Florida.
00:30This is also a popular spot for flooding when there are king tides.
00:35So we're about an hour and 40 minutes or so, give or take, before the next high tide cycle.
00:41But generally, if this was right at the high tide at 940 and 950 in the morning, the walkway you see behind me would have some overlapping, some overwash because of what we're expecting from those king tides.
00:54And as you mentioned, anywhere from the Palm Beaches to Dayton Broward, all the way down into the Miami-Dade area, again, expecting some type of impact from these king tides over the next several days.
01:07The local officials here actually think the worst of the king tides will be tomorrow during that high tide cycle, which will run in the morning and then 12 hours later at night.
01:17But let me show you some video that we have from the king tides in and around parts of Florida.
01:22There has already been persistent onshore flow for the last several days.
01:26We know that king tides are not storms.
01:29They are exceptionally high astronomical tides.
01:32What do you need to have a king tide?
01:33Well, the recipe is a full moon, which, of course, we have had.
01:37Last night it was beautiful.
01:39Although here in Miami, we've had persistent rain, so we didn't see much of it.
01:42The moon is, of course, near its perigee, which is wind that is closest to the earth, plus a persistent easterly onshore flow that helps pile that water toward the coast.
01:52If you add a few downpours, those drains simply cannot keep up in many parts of the country.
01:58But here in Miami, that is also no exception.
02:01The unusual hot spots are already have been showing some ponding over the weekend.
02:05And these tides are long.
02:07The waves are slow and are driven by gravity.
02:11When the moon and sun's gravity combine, that moon is extra close.
02:14The tide gets a boost.
02:15Around these days, water runs about one and a half to two hours before and after the peak.
02:19And definitely here in Biscayne Bay, where I am, I can definitely see it is higher than normal, but still not overwashing here across the sidewalk here.
02:28Sea level rises adds a higher baseline, so each king tide climbs a little more than it did the year before.
02:35We saw the last century about a foot of sea level rise in Florida, and that's coming from the Key West tidal gauges.
02:43And then we see more locally here on Miami Beach, we've just really seen more higher tides, more king tides over the last 10 years.
02:52And that just means we know when those tides go higher than a certain threshold, we're seeing more days of that.
02:58We need to advance our stormwater system, so we want to keep, you know, water moving, and we want to drain as quickly as possible.
03:06You know, king tides itself is coming from the ocean, so it's hard to drain the ocean.
03:10And that is so true, but it's not just here along beachfront areas that get those king tides.
03:19Tidal rivers, bays, canals, like the St. John's up in northern central Florida, in Savannah, Georgia, the Cooper and the Palm Lico and the Carolinas, they all can get back up from their rivers when there is a problem with those king tides.
03:33And when those king tide levels are elevated, storm drains can reverse bubbling water into streets instead of carrying the water out.
03:41Cities are responding with temporary pumps.
03:43There has also been an offer of sandbags all across the southeast, including here in Miami.
03:47Folks were getting sandbags over the weekend.
03:50The South Florida Water Management District is sending out a weekly king tide forecast so residents can try and move around the king tide morning peaks.
03:57And just some quick safety tips if you are going to be in an area that could be impacted by those king tides, just remember that you do not want to drive in floodwaters under any scenario.
04:06But remember, if you're driving in a king tide where there is some minor erosion on the road, that is saltwater, and that can damage your vehicle much more seriously than freshwater.
04:16So really, you do not want to mess around with saltwater.
04:19Just make sure that you're always trying to turn around, get out of those floodwaters.
04:22Avoid also walking through those waters.
04:25They can be very dirty.
04:26So remember, sometimes the septics in some parts of low-lying coastal areas can interchange with some of those drains, and the water is not always clean.
04:35So be very careful if you're going to have to walk through it.
04:37If you're walking your pet, officials are also saying if your pet gets exposed to some of that king tide water, make sure you give them a bath.
04:44Because, again, not the cleanest water out there.
04:47Besides that, there is also a high rip current risk here in Miami-Dade.
04:52All across South Florida, a dangerous rip current is expected through at least Wednesday.
04:58So we'll just have to see how that all plays out.
05:00But, you guys, the Miami officials here said they've tried to do a lot of resiliency over the last couple of years to try and get ready for king tides.
05:07But there is still going to be some minor erosion.
05:10It's more of a nuisance, but definitely can be some trouble for folks trying to get out and about as they kick off the work week.
05:17Reporting live from Miami, Florida, I'm Leslie Hudson.
05:19Back to you.
05:19All right.
05:20Thanks, Leslie.
05:20We'll talk to you a little later on this morning as the runners go past.
05:24I know.
05:24My question is, like, when they see the camera, do they pick up pace a little bit?
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