JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Flooding began in some areas of Jacksonville on Wednesday as people made preparations ahead of Nicole.
The parts of Jacksonville that saw flooding in the morning could see high water in the evening at high tide and Thursday as Nicole makes its way across Florida.
Up and down the St. Johns River, the water was already high on Wednesday. Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry and others said it could get worse. According to the National Weather Service Jacksonville, trapped tides in the St. Johns River will exacerbate and prolong tidal flooding into the weekend.
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In San Marco, warning signs were up and pumps were running to try to help hold back floodwaters. There were also crews throughout the city, including in San Marco, clearing out debris piled inside storm drains to try to make sure the storm waters will have somewhere to go besides in homes.
News4JAX spoke with Catherine, who owns several properties in the area. She was checking out the temporary pumps in place and hopes they will do the job.
“I just don’t know how all the pumps are going to work. I don’t know how bad it’s going to be, so I’m just trying to monitor everything, the weather reports. I’ve looked online at the tidal, how much more than normal the tides were supposed to be on the Main Street Bridge,” Catherine said. “So just trying to fit everything together and figure out just like everybody else what’s happening.”
Across the river is Memorial Park in Riverside — which is no stranger to flooding. The city just finished repairs to the bulkhead and railing following Hurricane Irma in 2017. And those out at the park on Wednesday said they are expecting problems from Nicole. News4JAX caught up with John Mosely, who was fishing in the area, and asked him about flooding.
“I’m pretty sure that it’s a possibility that it might flood, as high as the waters are now, we’re looking at tonight and tomorrow. Yeah, so with that in concern and consideration, I’m sure it might come across these risks,” Mosley said.
Victoria Turner doesn’t live in Riverside but she has been out checking the areas in Jacksonville that traditionally flood.
“I’m curious to see what’s going to happen, but compared to how they had Ian and this, this almost feels like it’s going to be worse to me,” Turner said. “I go to San Marco a lot, too, and I’m scared for them. It can rain a drop and it floods there.”
Hogans Creek near Springfield is an area that often floods, and that was the case Wednesday morning with tidal flooding. People who live there expressed concerns that the flooding is going to get worse as the storm moves closer.
In the South Shores neighborhood near St. Nicholas, as the tide came in, the waters rose, causing flooding in the area, including on Southampton Road. South Shores homeowner Patricia Botz is used to flooding.
“Well, I’m going to get ready. I was just in the backyard today to check the tents and stuff that we put up. My daughter’s visiting from Colorado, so I was, like, ‘Oh, God, we just pulled up,’” she said. “You know, the weather is crazy lately.”
Along Pottsburg Creek, News4JAX saw flooding at the boat ramp along Beach Boulevard and trailers underwater. News4JAX also learned that docks along the creek were also underwater.