What started as an ordinary rainy day in Palm Beach County quickly turned surreal as a historic, 1-in-1,000-year rainstorm transformed suburban neighborhoods into impromptu wetlands, stranding families and inviting apex predators right up to front doors.
Heavy downpours inundated the Riverwalk community with roughly 10 inches of standing water, while other pockets of Palm Beach County saw depths surge between two and three feet, turning roadways into canals and cutting off entire blocks.
With every street underwater, everyday life ground to an abrupt halt. High water flooded school offices, keeping children at home. The timing could hardly have been worse: it hit on Election Day and forced officials to relocate multiple polling stations so voters could cast their ballots safely away from submerged streets…