FL

Storm restoration across Palm Beach County

Palm Beach County faces a dual storm threat: coastal barrier islands and areas along the Intracoastal Waterway (Zone A and Zone B evacuation areas, including Singer Island, the Town of Palm Beach, and Riviera Beach) are exposed to storm surge that historically reached 11 feet during the 1928 Okeechobee hurricane and 6+ feet during Hurricane Frances in 2004. The county's flat, low-lying topography and vast impervious surfaces mean that intense rainfall from tropical systems causes severe inland flooding even without direct landfalls - impervious development increases runoff 2 to 6 times over natural terrain. Hurricane Wilma in 2005 struck with gusts exceeding 100 mph countywide, caused more than $2.9 billion in damage (over $1.6 billion to residential property alone), knocked out power to more than 90 percent of FPL customers, and kept schools closed for two weeks. Lake Okeechobee communities (Belle Glade, Pahokee, South Bay - Zone E) face a distinct flooding risk from lake surge and water management failures, a threat that killed over 2,500 people in 1928.