After four days of heavy, almost-constant rain on the Emerald Coast, the clouds parted Sunday letting some much-needed sunshine through and drawing crowds of tourists and locals to the beach on the final day of the long Fourth of July weekend.
A persistent storm sat over the coast Wednesday through Saturday. By Sunday, it had moved to the west, bringing some relief for local officials who still are dealing with the aftermath of the torrential rain.
“We’re just praying that this sun keeps burning bright,” said Russell Beaty, emergency management director for Walton County, which was the hardest-hit area.
In Inlet Beach, on the far southeast side of the county, 19.4 inches of rain had been recorded by Friday with an estimated additional two to four inches Saturday, said Kelly Godsey, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Tallahassee.
“That’s just unprecedented,” Beaty said.
In Freeport, almost 13 inches were recorded by Friday. Rock Hill had more than 10 inches.
About 30 roads remained closed Sunday in Walton County either because of standing water or damage. Public works crews were out trying to help people who were having trouble accessing their homes, he said.
“It’s sporadic right now, but we’re looking for those hardest hit areas and those areas that are really still holding water,” he said.
The county declared a state of emergency Friday that will continue through the end of this workweek.
Sight of the sun was welcome Sunday after locals and tourists had been stuck indoors for days.
Click here to see a slideshow of beachgoers enjoying a break from the rain.
Although the Gulf of Mexico was rough and rip currents possible, people took advantage of the break in the weather to get out to the beach.
Shelly Wilson, her husband and her two children, 14 and 12 years old, all from Atlanta, were enjoying the surf on Okaloosa Island.
She said they had been in town since Thursday trying to find ways to entertain themselves in the rain. Wilson said they visited the arcade and watched the Wimbledon tennis tournament on TV, but when the sun came out Sunday they were ready to get to the real reason for their visit.
“My daughter could hardly contain herself,” Wilson said. “She had her bathing suit on first thing this morning and hustled us out the door.”
The weather now is expected to return to the scattered thunderstorms that are usual for the area this time of year.
If the storms become stationary, however, they could cause flooding to return, meteorologist Godsey said.
The biggest threat in the coming days will be severe river flooding expected in Walton County, Beaty said.
The Choctawhatchee River in Bruce is expected to crest at 18.4 feet this morning, which is more than 3 feet over the river’s flood stage. It will take another day or two for that to reach the communities of Bunker and Steele Field downstream, Beaty said.
“Those people down there are pretty resilient and have seen the river come and go before, but this is a pretty good amount of river rise,” he said.
In Okaloosa County, the threats seemed to have passed by Sunday, said Randy McDaniel, the county’s emergency management director.
“The sun has been out, the rain has moved out to the west and the water is dropped,” he said.
Officials now will work to estimate cost of damages to apply for financial relief from the state and federal governments.
Some unpaved roads were washed out and wooden bridges destroyed and will have to be repaired or replaced.