NORFOLK, Va. — On Sunday, many residents living at Lafayette Apartments complex off Mayflower Road said wet weather conditions forced them to move their cars out of the building's parking lot.
The complex sits next to the Lafayette River off Mayflower Road in Norfolk.
“I love it here besides the flooding,” said resident Ashley Phillips.
Phillips said she learned her lesson the last time the area around her apartment flooded.
“And I woke up one morning, and my car was floating in the water. I had to get a brand-new car. It was terrible,” said Phillips.
Tidal flooding in the area brought a sense of adventure to Richard Jones and his sons.
“This arrives really with what I feel like is not much rain. So it's a really cool phenomenon,” said Jones.
Wetlands Watch Executive Director Skip Stiles says tidal flooding is expected to cause some serious traffic problems in the next few days, especially along Brambleton Avenue in Norfolk.
City of Virginia Beach storm water crews are standing by for potential coastal flooding starting Monday, according to city spokesperson Drew Lankford. Lankford reminds drivers to take their time on the road this week.
“If the forecast holds out like it is, it’s going to be messy, high winds and all," he said. "It never hurts to get an earlier start than usual, but they are going to have to be patient because it’s just going to be nasty weather based on the forecast, and there’s no use to try and rush to get anywhere.”
Lankford said city crews also cleaned the storm drains and checked all pump stations ahead of the storm. He explained city crews will focus efforts based on the route of the storm, and according to the emergency operations center staff, the weather event could impact the Oceanfront and Lynnhaven areas.
In Norfolk, the Brambleton parking lot and York Street parking garage are open to anyone who needs to move their vehicle to higher ground. In addition, Norfolk and Virginia Beach residents are encouraged to use the Waze app to get real-time flooding updates in those areas.