Pumps working overtime in Cutler Bay neighborhood severely flooded from weekend's tropical system
CUTLER BAY - Residents still dealing with flooded streets outside of their homes in Cutler Bay's Saga Bay community following heavy rain over the weekend.
"It's worse back there," said one driver as they carefully maneuvered through the flooded roadway.
Scott Hewes and Susan Starnes told CBS4's Peter D'Oench that they had to walk out of their Saga Bay neighborhood because they could not use their cars.
Hewes said, "This has been crazy. I have never seen so much water and I have lived here since 1975. We are blocked in."
Starnes said, "This is insane. I have been water like this before."
Drone video provided by the Town of Cutler Bay highlights the problem area near 207th Street along 79th court, which leads to Saga Bay Lake where officials say the problem stemmed from.
The lake overflowed on Saturday and again Monday, causing water to inundate the surrounding neighborhood.
"It started Saturday night, and then it stopped last night and it went down but then it started up again. Now it's right back to where it was," said Neil Blake, who has lived in the area for 8 years.
"It gets really bad here, as you can see from my feet," said Neil Blake, who tried to walk through the flooded streets but had to turn back after the water went over his knees.
Cutler Bay Mayor Tim Meerbott said, "15 inches of rain over such a short period of time is something that I have never seen before, We are securing as many pumps as possible and are working with the South Florida Water Management District but the bottom line is we have to rely on gravity. We can't remove that much water with the pumps."
"The District did open the gates with low tide. Our priority now is taking care of residents. This is the worst flooding we have seen since 2005. All this building means there is less opportunity for water to recede into the ground. We are urging people to avoid driving in these flooded areas and if they need help urgently in terms of getting out, they should call 911."
Meerbott said there are 589 homes in Saga Bay.
Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava took a tour of Saga Bay in a high-axel, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue flood response vehicle and saw the flooding firsthand during her tour.
"This is very scary and sobering," she said. "These homes are built higher after Hurricane Andrew so we so not see a lot of damage to the homes but the roads are completely flooded and the lake is over the banks and the electricity and the phones are on but access is really really difficult. We are working with the town ad the South Florida Water Management District but the bottom line is that this is very low ground and it's difficult to pump all the water. Some water is being pumped into the mangroves. It has already receded a little bit and we are making progress. We need long-term solutions here. We have made changes in the infrastructure but we need to do much more."
CBS4 News was on the scene as several vehicles were towed away after stalling out in the flood waters along SW 85th avenue. One man had to rent to truck from Home Depot just to make it to his home.
"It's disgusting really, look at all the people who live here and their yards are underwater," said Blake.
A landscaping crew provided CBS4 News with cellphone video that shows Saga Lake Park, which sits next to Saga Lake, completely underwater.
Crews at Saga Bay will continue to pump water out of the lake into the early morning hours if necessary. Something CBS4 witnessed firsthand thanks to a resident giving our crew a truck tour.
"You'll be able to see where the lake connects to the road itself. There's no separation," said Chris Delgado, pointing out the worst spots in Saga Bay.
Residents say they're concerned the area may be hit even harder if a stronger system rolls through.
Noel Izquierdo, who has lived in Saga Bay since 2003, says the flood is the worst he's seen.
"The flooding is a lot worse than 2005. It's just not going anywhere," Izquierdo said.
The three pumps put in by Cutler Bay Public Works take roughly 17,000 gallons of water per minute out of the lake.
They dump it into the mangrove nearby, which flows into Biscayne Bay.
"Trying to lower the lake's water level to hopefully clear all the roads. The lake overflowed twice. All the water you see in the streets is coming from this lake," said Cutler Bay Public Works Director Alfredo Quintero.