At Least 2 Dead as Heavy Rain and Significant Flooding Continues in South Florida: See the Photos

At least two people are dead after days of heavy rain caused significant flooding in South Florida.

Governor Ron DeSantis has declared a state of emergency for Broward, Collier, Lee, Miami-Dade and Sarasota counties, which have been battered by the wet weather since Tuesday, according to CNN and ABC News.

Hours prior, two people died in what the Florida Highway Patrol described as a weather-related crash in Immokalee, Naples Daily News and CBS affiliate WINK-TV reported.

The victims are a 35-year-old woman, who died at the scene, and a 25-year-old man, who died at a local hospital, per WINK-TV.

Some portions of South Florida have seen as much as 20 inches of rainfall since the storms began, according to the Associated Press. Local officials are encouraging people to remain off the roads if possible.

Ted Rico, a local tow truck driver, said some of the impacted areas “looked like the beginning of a zombie movie.”

“There’s cars littered everywhere, on top of sidewalks, in the median, in the middle of the street, no lights on,” Rico told the AP. “Just craziness, you know. Abandoned cars everywhere.”

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Daniela Urrieche, 26, said this is the worst flooding she has ever seen in the area. “In the nine years that I’ve lived here, this has been the worst,” she explained. “Even in a hurricane, streets were not as bad as it was in the past 24 hours.”

Even off the roads, people are still running into trouble with the flooding. Broward County Sheriff’s Office Fire Rescue Battalion Chief Michael Kane told CNN that crews have used boats “to rescue people standing on top of the roofs of cars.”

The National Weather Service said more rain is expected Friday “before the heavy rain threat slowly diminishes this weekend.” A flood watch is currently in effect.

“The already saturated and vulnerable soils/surfaces and urban areas of southern Florida will be sensitive to additional rainfall,” the agency stated.