TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Heavy storm surge flooding hit downtown Tampa as Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida.
Significant flooding affected roads in and out of Davis Islands, including the area surrounding Tampa General Hospital.
Video taken by a TGH employee showed the waters near the hospital.
However, the hospital itself said it was protected by the high waters thanks to its AquaFence.
“Designed to protect vulnerable area of our campus, the AquaFence is a water-impermeable barrier created to withstand storm surge up to 15 feet above sea level,” the hospital wrote on social media. “Since 2019, the technology has worked successfully through multiple rain events to prevent storm water from impacting hospital operations.”
According to the AquaFence website, the fences are positioned in areas around the hospital due to the different elevation levels across the facility.
AquaFence barriers can be deployed around buildings or even city blocks to help keep water away from critical facilities. They can also be used to divert rivers away from urban centers.
Tampa police warned residents that the surge would peak before 3 a.m. Friday.
“Between now and sunrise this is NOT the time to “white water raft” on Bayshore Blvd or take an amateur adventure through downtown,” the department wrote on X.