Fort Lauderdale's River Oaks residents say new pump station failed first test of flooding

Lance Peterman took a video of a backed-up drain on his street on Friday. 

When CBS News Miami visited the area Saturday, the drain still had not cleared. Peterman said that means any new rainwater has nowhere to go in Fort Lauderdale's River Oaks neighborhood.

"By that time, everybody is in a panic, and we're worried our houses are gonna flood again with the water," Peterman said.

Peterman said he was glad the water did not get into his house.

"And it was just flowing down here like a river," Peterman said.

Peterman's SW 21st Court street is about half a mile from a pump station the city installed at the end of 2024. Despite the pump station and four drains on his street, Peterman said the city's stormwater management systems were insufficient.

"They spent all this money on these pumps, and it doesn't seem like it's working," Peterman said.

"If it would have kept on raining it would have definitely been a real catastrophe," neighbor Ted Inserra said.

Inserra said this felt like the first test for the new pump station.

"It, in our opinion, failed. How can that be?" Inserra said.

The city spent $50 million on flood prevention after historic flooding in 2023, which affected Peterman's street. The city says the new pump station system can handle 7 to 10 inches of rain, compared with about 3 inches under the previous system.

CBS News Miami reached out to the city regarding the latest flooding issues and is awaiting a response.