Researchers who study flooding, development and climate change were horrified by the emerging images but not surprised. For years, they’ve warned sprawling development in Florida and other coastal states isn’t sustainable.
"None of this is surprising," said Linda Shi, an assistant professor in Cornell University's city and regional planning department."How much does it take for us to want to make a change? Our policies and our choices have led us to this point."
A similar combination of rain and storm surge continued to prompt water rescues Friday in Flagler County. They"lost everything," she said. It's their family's second such disaster. Their home and belongings were destroyed by the Black Forest wildfire in Colorado in 2013.Berry lives in an idyllic setting in rural Manatee County, but much of the flooding in Central Florida took place in more developed communities like the one where Liz-Ortiz has lived for nine years. Researchers said that highlights the need for better planning.
"Mother Nature keeps telling us homes don't belong where we built them, yet we continue to build homes where they don't belong." Developers are building houses"everywhere they can,” she said. “They need to be thinking more about the safety of the people, especially when there are so many hurricanes and tornadoes.”Several experts said this week that Florida’s elevation makes it harder to drain away rain and easier for a storm surge to move farther inland, basic gravity that should have been taken into account more as the state developed.
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