Hurricane (Typhoon) — Inland Flagler, Florida

2024-10-09 to 2024-10-10 · Inland Flagler, Florida

Event narrative

Flagler County had Hurricane force wind gusts mainly along the coast ranging from 45-92 mph which led to downed trees and powerlines as well as roof damage being reported across much of the county. It should be noted the 92 mph wind gust reported at a WeatherStem site at Marineland remains suspect. The combination of heavy rainfall and surge flooding led to extensive flooding across Flagler county.

Widespread 5-9 inches of rain were reported, with the highest storm total measured at 9.36 inches in Bunnell at 1:10 am on 10/10. At 2:53 pm, Flagler EM reported flooding in the city on the west side of the bridge on West 100 by the railroad tracks. At 3:30 pm on 10/9, a CoCoRaHS observer about 5 miles NW of Palm Coast reported 2.54 inches of rainfall since 6 am with a flooded yard. On 10/10 at 2:16 am, a mesonet site 3 miles S of Palm Coast had measured 5.51 inches of rainfall. At 3:23 am, a mesonet site 4 miles SE of Andalusia measured 6.05 inches of storm total rainfall.

On Oct. 10th at 5:15 PM, the Pellicer Creek near Espanola river gauge peaked in moderate flood stage and measured a height of 3.14 ft MHHW. The Flagler EM reported the salt water canals were 23 inches over the top in Palm Coast. Widespread street flooding, flooded docks, and road closures were reported across Palm Coast due to heavy rainfall and storm surge. Floodwaters inundated a home along Perthshire Ln in Palm Coast with floodwaters reaching up to a woman's ankles. Floodwaters in the streets appeared to reach halfway up a car's tire. According to the Flagler Sheriff, a swift water rescue of a family was conducted in Palm Coast when their truck became stranded in floodwaters. Street flooding from rainfall as well as overflow from creeks, canals, and lakes were present across the inland portions of the county.

Haw Creek above Russell Landing near Crescent Lake reached major flooding on Oct. 10th at 2:30 AM and then reached record flooding at 9.23 ft on Oct. 12th at 12:15 PM. This record level broke the previous record of 8.7 ft set during Hurricane Irma. According to the Flagler Sheriff, a swift water rescue of a lady and her pets was conducted due to floodwaters from Haw Creek inundating her home along CR-305. The floodwaters surrounding the house went up to the knees of police officers. Waters from Bull Creek flooded the nearby Bull Creek Fish Campgrounds. Due to a large amount of accumulated water over the highway at the base of the overpass in Bunnell, FDOT closed the road between Woodland Street and Deen Road. Flooding was also reported in Bunnell on the west side of the bridge on West 100 by the railroad tracks.

Numerous trees were reported down across roads and on power lines in Bunnell and Palm Coast. A snapped tree fell on a home along Lloyd Trail in Palm Coast and destroyed the roof. Another tree fell on a car in the W Section of Palm Coast and totaled the car. Fences were damaged either by strong wind gusts or fallen trees in Palm Coast. A screened enclosure was damaged by a fallen tree along Courtney Pl in Palm Coast. Winds begin to ramp up in the evening of Oct. 9th with peak winds occurring on Oct. 10th between 12-4 AM EDT. On 10/9 at 9:50 PM, Fswn Flagler County Em Marineland reported a wind gust of 64 mph. At 10:10 PM, 1334W 1.6 E Palm Coast WeatherSTEM station measured a wind gust of 50 mph with sustained wind of 40 mph. At 11:35 pm, the AWOS at the Bunnell Airport reported a gust of 51 mph. At 11:55 PM, AWOS station KFIN Flagler County in Bunnell reported a wind gust of 54 mph. On 10/10 at 12:55 am, the AWOS at the Bunnell airport measured a wind gust of 55 mph. At 1:25 am, a mesonet site about 3 miles ENE of Bunnell reported a sustained wind of 54 mph.

NOTE: The Marineland mesonet site was on the higher end of observations, even higher than some gusts reported near the eyewall closer to Cape Canaveral. The data is suspect.

On Oct. 9th at 8 AM, Flagler county issued a mandatory evacuation for residents living in Mobile Homes and RV's, and specific areas for their coastal and island communities, including Marineland, Palm Coast and Flagler Beach. Flagler County Emergency Management reported that the county suffered an estimated $18.8 million in damages.

Wider weather episode

A tropical disturbance over the southwest Gulf of Mexico quickly developed into Tropical Storm

Milton on Saturday, October 5th. Milton then moved slowly east-southeastward, strengthening into a

hurricane the following day. On Monday, October 7th, the storm underwent rapid intensification,

reaching Category 5 strength as it neared the northwestern coast of Mexico's Yucatn Peninsula. Late

on Monday and into Tuesday, Milton shifted eastward and then northeastward across the

southeastern Gulf of Mexico.

As Milton approached Florida's Gulf coast on Wednesday, October 9th, it began to gradually weaken,

but still maintained major hurricane status. The storm made landfall that evening near Siesta Key on

Florida's west coast as a strong Category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale.

While it weakened further as it crossed central Florida overnight, Milton remained a hurricane. By

early Thursday morning, October 10th, it emerged off Florida's Atlantic coast as a Category 1 storm.

Milton caused widespread impacts across north-central and northeast Florida, as well as coastal

southeast Georgia. Flagler County, along with large portions of St. Johns, Putnam, and Marion

counties, experienced sustained tropical storm-force winds and hurricane-force gusts. Rainfall

amounts ranged from 7 to 11 inches as outer rainbands and the storm's powerful northern side

swept through these areas late Wednesday night into early Thursday morning.

This heavy rainfall caused Deep Creek, a tributary of the St. Johns River in St. Johns County, to reach

record levels on Thursday, October 10th, surpassing the previous record set during Hurricane Irma in

2017. This led to extensive flooding throughout the southern half of St. Johns County, particularly in

the Flagler Estates community and the towns of Hastings and Spuds. Additionally, record flooding was

observed along Haw Creek in western Flagler County, exceeding the previous record set in the

aftermath of Hurricane Ian in 2022.

Storm surge flooding of around 3 feet above Mean Higher High Water (MHHW) was recorded along

the St. Johns River and the northeast Florida coast. Significant inundation was reported along the

lower St. Johns River, with widespread flooding in areas such as Welaka, FL.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1219079. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.