The skies are expected to dump another two to four inches of rain on an already saturated Emerald Coast by this evening. Some areas could see rainfall up to seven inches, which could lead to flash flooding.
“The area is so saturated right now and it’s really hard to know where the storm is going to set up,” said Randy McDaniel, Okaloosa County’s emergency management director. “Right now our largest threat is flash flooding.”
Some rural roads had been washed out after heavy, driving rain drenched the area Friday and Saturday.
View a slideshow of photos of some of the damage.
Three to five inches fell over much of the Emerald Coast with some areas receiving up to seven, according to radar estimates from the National Weather Service in Mobile, Ala.
River levels were approaching area bridges, but none were reportedly flooded by Sunday.
The Choctawhatchee River in north Walton County was over 12 feet on Sunday and expected to rise to over 20 feet by Tuesday.
The Shoal River, the Blackwater River and the Yellow River had already exceeded their flood stages or were expected to today or tomorrow, but not enough to cause any damage to structures or roads.
That is if there isn’t a lot more rain to come, McDaniel said.
“Right now the prediction is for the rivers to stay close to where they are at, but if we get more rain they will go up even more, so we’ll be keeping an eye on it,” he said.
Rainstorms were expected to start up again about midnight today and continue through the evening, according to the National Weather Service.
A warm front in the Gulf of Mexico should move north and meet up with a cold front from the west, causing another bout of heavy rain with the potential for thunderstorms and possible hail.
People should continue to monitor weather reports for any flood warnings or severe weather threats, the weather service advised.
