Floodwaters from a deluge that dropped up to 2 feet of rain on Florida’s east coast were slowly draining Wednesday, but forecasters said the threat was shifting to rivers, with the Peace River in Arcadia expected to reach major flood stage and the St. Johns River near Cocoa rising toward it.

At least two people died in Palm Bay, and more than 160 people were rescued in Brevard County on Monday alone, according to Florida Today. Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency for Brevard, DeSoto, Hardee, Highlands, Indian River, Martin and St. Lucie counties, and the National Weather Service described the rainfall on the Space Coast as “a one in a 1,000-year event.”

The worst of the rain is over. The weather service’s Weather Prediction Center said locally heavy rain remained possible along the southeast Florida coast Wednesday, which “could drive additional flash flooding as the area remains vulnerable,” but that rain in the area would taper off after Wednesday.

How Much Rain Fell

The rain began Sunday, Nov. 1, as a high-pressure system over the eastern United States drove a strong onshore flow toward a low off Florida’s west coast, the Weather Prediction Center said, according to USA Today. With lagoon, river and groundwater levels already high from recent king tides, the water had nowhere to go, Florida Today reported.

The weather service’s storm summary listed these among the highest totals from midnight Nov. 1 to noon Nov. 3:

– Grant-Valkaria: 24.69 inches
– Malabar: 24.52 inches
– Riviera Beach: 23.19 inches
– Palm Bay: 22 inches
– Bayside Lakes: 20.33 inches
– Port St. Lucie: 16.7 inches
– Melbourne: 14.95 inches

In Melbourne, 11.03 inches fell by 5 p.m. Nov. 2, breaking the station’s all-time daily rainfall record, the weather service said.

In Palm Beach County, parts of Riviera Beach, The Acreage and Palm Beach Gardens reported more than 15 inches of rain in about 12 hours, the city of Palm Beach Gardens said. Citing NOAA rainfall frequency data, the city said that total exceeds a 1-in-100-year event and approaches a 1-in-200-year event. Palm Beach County declared a local state of emergency and kept its Emergency Operations Center at a Level 2 activation. Palm Beach County was not included in the governor’s executive order.

Deaths and Rescues

Palm Bay police confirmed the death of Joshua Bennett, 34, who was found in his truck in a flooded part of southeast Palm Bay, Florida Today reported. At a news conference Tuesday, Palm Bay Mayor Rob Medina reported a second death, that of Archie Richards, 78. Details of Richards’ death were not immediately available.

Brevard County sheriff’s deputies and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission rescued more than 160 people Monday, according to Florida Today.

“We were still finding people stranded in cars as of 2 a.m. Tuesday,” said Don Walker, a spokesperson for Brevard County Emergency Management.

Airboats retrieved at least seven residents from homes in the Wingate subdivision in West Melbourne. In Melbourne, police used ropes to reach two Florida Tech students caught in a current in a flooded retention pond, and a state wildlife helicopter airlifted a third, Melbourne police Cmdr. Shawn Eising said.

In Palm Beach County, the county fire rescue’s swift-water team rescued 14 people, and nine public schools were closed, the county said in an activation update.

Palm Bay Fire Rescue Assistant Chief John Ringleb warned that flooded roads remain dangerous even as water appears to recede, because of hidden damage and debris, Florida Today reported.

In Palm Bay’s Turkey Creek neighborhood, Charlene and Justin Thomas said water reached their countertops within three hours Monday morning.

“We moved here in March, so here we go,” Charlene Thomas told the newspaper. “Welcome to Florida.”

 Water, Roads and the Airport

Palm Bay extended a boil water notice after a water main break along Port Malabar Boulevard Northeast, and some customers remained without water service, the city said. Melbourne Mayor Paul Alfrey listed more than a dozen road closures Tuesday, including stretches of Babcock Street, Eau Gallie Boulevard and Palm Bay Road.

Melbourne Orlando International Airport resumed commercial flights Tuesday, but restrooms and food service were limited because of a disruption to the city of Melbourne’s water system, Florida Today reported.

The flooding also scrambled Election Day. At least 20 polling places were changed in at least eight counties after the governor’s emergency declaration, The Associated Press reported, including at least five precincts in Brevard County and seven in St. Lucie County.

Rivers Rise as Rain Ends

Water that fell over the weekend is now draining into Florida’s slow-moving rivers. The weather service said significant river flooding is forecast along the St. Johns and Peace rivers through the end of the week as floodwaters will be slow to recede.

The Peace River at State Road 70 in Arcadia stood at 14.37 feet at 6:30 a.m. Wednesday, above its 14-foot moderate flood stage, and was forecast to crest near 16.5 feet, above the 16-foot major flood stage, according to the weather service’s river forecast. At 16 feet, up to 60 homes in the River Acres area flood and the Woman’s Club and American Legion are affected, according to the weather service’s flood impact statements. The forecast crest Thursday evening would still be well below the record of 23.7 feet set Oct. 1, 2022, after Hurricane Ian.

“Through tonight and into your Thursday, the Peace River is forecast to climb into major flood status,” WINK News meteorologist David Nazario wrote Wednesday.

The St. Johns River, which flows north, stood at 15.67 feet near Cocoa at 6:15 a.m. Wednesday, in moderate flood, and was forecast to rise to about 16.9 feet, just under its 17-foot major flood stage, by late in the week, according to NOAA’s river forecast. USA Today reported earlier that the river near Cocoa could come within a foot of its all-time record.

A Drier, Cooler Weekend

Rain chances in Central and South Florida were 40% to 50% Wednesday and will drop sharply Thursday and Friday after a front moves through, the state emergency management division said. By Saturday, rain chances will be near zero for the peninsula and 10% to 20% across the Panhandle and northeast Florida.

Forecasters are also watching an area of low pressure expected to form a few hundred miles south of Bermuda. The National Hurricane Center said it could gain subtropical characteristics late this week or this weekend as it moves slowly eastward, away from the United States. WINK News called it “a non-issue” for Southwest Florida.

Longer term, forecasters said this week’s flooding cannot yet be blamed on El Niño, but they expect a wetter winter. Will Ulrich, warning coordination meteorologist at the weather service office in Melbourne, told emergency officials in late October that about 70% of El Niño winters since 1950 have been wetter than normal in Central Florida, USA Today reported.

“So there’s pretty high confidence that the season is going to be unusual,” Ulrich said.