“Shop Owners on North Beach Street Brace for Flooding Challenges”

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Flooding continues to affect North Beach Street in Daytona Beach, but normal amounts of rain are not to blame. High tides from the Halifax River are pushing water up through city storm drains, leaving local businesses scrambling for solutions.

Bob Avens and Storm Haze are long time employees at The Fishin Hole, a fishing supply shop on North Beach Street, and say flooding is now a daily concern.

“Overnight tonight, the high tide in the river is 10 p.m. So between eight and probably one, the street will be flooded,” said Avens. “You can come in here at 10 a.m. when the tide is turning, the water will be lapping on our door.”

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Avens said water overflows from storm drains onto the street and into nearby stores, even when there is no rain because the systems in place have nowhere for the water to go. Avens and Haze have started building makeshift barriers in front of the shop.

“In my bare feet, we put up, we have a board that we put in front of the door, and then we put sandbags against that to hold it in place. And that keeps back the big rush of water when cars drive through. Because when they drive through, it just goes above that, sometimes really high. But it keeps a bulk of it out,” Avens said.

But the system isn’t foolproof. Last Thursday, water seeped through their defenses, flooding parts of the store.

Avens and Haze said the city of Daytona Beach tries to help reduce flooding by putting up barricades. However, fast-moving vehicles have become another threat.

“And you see that bumper across the street?… See that? That’s from one of the cars flying through here so fast on Thursday, it ripped the bumper off the front of the car, went over the top of the car, and they kept right on going. That bumper’s still there,” Haze said.

Haze said the best way for the community to help prevent future flooding is simple: Slow down while driving along North Beach Street.