JENSEN BEACH, Fla. — More than a week after historic rainfall hit the Treasure Coast, Martin County leaders are looking at how to prevent another flooding disaster after officials said Port St. Lucie pumped floodwater into the Savannas Preserve before water flowed south toward neighborhoods in Jensen Beach.
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The flooding and damage came days after the historic rainfall stopped, leaving residents questioning what happened, who was pumping water into the preserve and what can be changed before another major storm.
WPTV's Michael Hoffman has been following those questions as families continue recovering from homes that were damaged or destroyed.
Residents question what happened after the rain
Residents have told WPTV they believe pumping floodwater from areas to the north contributed to the natural flow of water moving south and overflowing into their Jensen Beach neighborhoods.
Tiffany Kincaid was among the residents whose homes were devastated.
“I've never seen anything like this, not this level of devastation that has been sort of sitting in water for now eight days,” Kincaid said.
Kincaid said her family believed protections were in place until rising water forced them out.
"We trusted that a plan was in place to protect us, until midnight when water became entering our home, and then we quickly realized that we needed to get out," Kincaid said.
Martin County official: 'The severity of that rainfall caught us unprepared'
At a Martin County Commission meeting, Public Works Director James Gorton acknowledged the challenge presented by the historic rainfall.
"The severity of that rainfall caught us unprepared," Gorton said. "It caught St. Lucie County unprepared. It caught Indian River unprepared."
Gorton also addressed pumping from Port St. Lucie into the Savannas Preserve.
"They pumped Monday and they pumped Tuesday morning. They stopped Tuesday morning," Gorton said.
Gorton said one concern is that individual jurisdictions may be looking primarily at conditions within their own watersheds rather than what happens farther downstream.
"They're just looking at the water levels that are in their watershed," Gorton said. "They're not looking at their impacts to the downstream."
Pumping was permitted, but officials question existing system
The pumping itself is not an illegal practice. Port St. Lucie has a permit allowing it to pump into the preserve, and Martin County leaders said there are not concrete regulation schedules governing the Savannas as a whole.
That has raised a bigger question for local leaders: Who should be responsible for considering the consequences across the entire watershed?
“I don't know that we can modify their permit, but I would hope that we'd be able to look at that and say, you know, do no harm, which is really what kind of — or shared adversity, I think, is a better way to say it,” Gorton said.
Could one agency manage the entire watershed?
One potential solution discussed by Martin County officials would put management of the Savannas watershed under one overarching organization rather than relying on decisions made by individual jurisdictions.
“Once we get that water out, there's a larger discussion that we need to have, which is: What are we going to do to mitigate this in the future?” Gorton said.
He suggested the water management district could potentially play a role.
"One such idea might be looking at treating the Savannas as a watershed that needs to be managed by one party," Gorton said. "Maybe it would be the water management district."
Martin County Commissioner Edward Ciampi agreed that the current situation warrants another look.
"I agree with what your suggestion was, is that it just can't be whoever pumps fastest and first wins," Ciampi said.
For people still dealing with the consequences in Jensen Beach, those discussions come as they search for answers, assistance and, in some cases, a dry place to call home.
WPTV will continue following whether Martin County and other agencies develop a new plan for managing water in the Savannas and what changes could be made before another major rainfall event.
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