'Catastrophic flooding' hits Florida

Disaster News Network: Tropical Storm Fay, crawling just off the coast of Florida, continued Wednesday to soak the state causing "catastrophic flooding." Some areas were expected to receive up to 30 inches of rain. "This storm is turning into a serious, catastrophic flooding event, particularly in southern Brevard County," Gov. Charlie Crist said in announcing he was seeking a federal disaster declaration for affected counties.

Fay has dumped as much as 25 inches of rain on Brevard County, causing extensive flooding especially near South Melbourne. Some residents of a trailer park had to be rescued by Florida National Guardsmen. A tornado on Tuesday in Barefoot Bay and constant heavy rain in Indiatlantic and Palm Bay has also caused a great deal of water damage throughout that area….

….Fay was sitting just offshore in the Atlantic off the central coast but was forecast to begin moving slowly toward the west-northwest late Wednesday or early Thursday. It was then expected to cross back into northern Florida on Thursday, marking the third time the tropical storm came ashore in the state. At 11 p.m. EDT, Fay was 35 miles southeast of Daytona Beach and was picking up strength, with winds of 60 mph. The storm was expected to weaken as it moved back over land.

"Fay will be moving rather slowly during the next several days posing a significant heavy rainfall and flooding hazard to a very large area," the National Hurricane Center said. A tropical storm warning was in effect from Fort Pierce to the Savannah River between Georgia and South Carolina. Tornadoes were also possible in northeastern Florida and southeast Georgia….

Tropical Storm Fay (2008) snapped by Aqua Satellite on August 15, 2008, NASA, Wikimedia Commons