After Monday’s downpour, Cape Coral locals brace for round 2

The rain left cars stalled in the high flood waters, leaving the cars to be pulled away by trucks while the water filled the streets.

Locals are asking the City of Cape Coral what happened on Monday and what is being done to prevent it from happening again.

When WINK News asked the city, they said in part, that their stormwater management system is designed so that rainfall does not drain too quickly, and Cape Coral has one of the best stormwater management systems in the state.

People WINK News spoke with are hoping the rain doesn’t flood as much as it did on Monday.

Instead of worrying about the several inches of rain expected to fall on Tuesday, locals are focusing on getting things back to normal.

“I’m sure everybody thinks about Ian! When I start seeing waves on my street I’m thinking. It’s like, holy cow. It’s happening again,” said Deborah Eckdahl, who has lived in Cape Coral since the 1980s.

Life doesn’t stop and wait, even when it’s pouring and the roads are flooded.

“My son needed to be picked up from daycare, a couple of blocks from here for 6 o’clock. We waited as long as we could, and my daughter came down to pick him up and told her don’t take the side streets. And, of course, she took the side street,” said James Harrold from Miami.

Their car ended up staying on that same side street overnight.

“Car conked out, and the neighbors tell her to push it up over,” said Harrold.

The car was towed Tuesday morning. Which begs the question, how did his daughter get out Monday night?

Thankfully Harrold has a Cape Coral friend, Jeremy Glassy, who has a lifted truck.

“I got through it slowly but it was definitely nerve-racking,” said Glassy.

Glassy said he’d rather drive through the rain than through the snow, but either way, the experience was frightening.

“Scary,” said Glassy. “I didn’t really want to be out here doing it. But we did it. Wanted to get his grandchild home safely.”

Monday evening, the National Weather Service put Lee County under a flood advisory. A huge downpour caused many low-lying roads in south Cape Coral neighborhoods to flood.

Tuesday, people are still dealing with the aftermath.

The city of Cape Coral says they have one of the best storm water management systems in the state. The city asks neighbors to be patient and allow 72 hours for water to drain.

If standing water does not drain you may need to call 311 to get someone out to look at it.