JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Intense flooding and heavy rain took over several parts of Jacksonville on Sunday afternoon. Riverside, Avondale, San Marco and downtown Jacksonville were among the areas hardest hit.
The water was above ankles in parts of town, and some people made the most out of it by taking their kayaks for a spin on the streets, while others had their cars damaged.
“We heard something scrubbing, and I’m like, ‘What is it?’ I got out, and I saw the bumper,” Karma Wililams said. “I’m like, ‘I know that’s not ours.’ Then we looked in the front of the car, and it’s gone; it’s just floating away.”
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Cassat Avenue saw some of the worst.
At one point, Action News Jax saw nearly 10 cars stuck under the Interstate 10 overpass. Just a few feet further, a silver sedan was surrounded by water with nowhere to go.
Drivers like Kaylena Keith said they waited for an hour and a half in that area. Keith said she was late for work and her car was dead.
“I drove right into the water. I was trying to turn, but that street was flooded too, so I was like, ‘I’ll just go home.’ But it was flooded,” Keith said. “I went like maybe 5 mph, and it was just stuck.”
Others were stuck in the water for so long that they had to be picked up by friends to get home.
“I was coming from work, and I was just trying to go through (the water) and thought I could make it,” Cassandra Sharer said.
Drivers like Zach Turner reminded everyone to stay safe on the roads. He was one of the several stuck under the I-10 overpass. At one point, he said the water was blinding his view on the freeway.
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“It was very scary,” he said. “Very, very scary.”
Nearly two hours later, the drivers did turn around to avoid the flooding. They told Action News Jax they were just happy they weren’t hurt.