In Flooded Brevard County, Polling Places Moved for Election Day After 16 to 22 Inches of Rain
Brevard County voters go to the polls Tuesday with some polling places moved after 16 to 22 inches of rain fell on southern Brevard, more than 60 people were rescued on Monday, and county schools stayed closed for Election Day.
Southern Brevard County took between 16 and 22 inches of rain, flooding communities around Melbourne, West Melbourne and Palm Bay, and the flooding followed voters into Election Day: local reporting identified three replacement polling sites — New Shiloh Christian Center and the Joseph N. Davis Community Center in Melbourne, and the City Hall Council Chambers in Palm Bay — for voters whose assigned sites could not be used, according to the Brevard emergency coverage compiled and read this cycle.
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers rescued more than 60 people in Brevard on Monday, News 6 reported in that coverage, and Brevard Public Schools canceled Tuesday classes after Monday's closures. The American Red Cross opened a shelter at Parker Memorial Missionary Baptist in Cocoa, according to the county's Monday emergency updates.
Governor Ron DeSantis's Monday emergency declaration covers Brevard and six other counties — DeSoto, Hardee, Highlands, Indian River, Martin and St. Lucie — and runs 60 days unless extended. Palm Beach County is not in the order. For Florida readers outside Brevard, the distinction the county itself drew is the useful one on Tuesday: the state declaration makes help available, while local updates say which routes, services and polling places are actually usable. No flood deaths had been reported as of Monday afternoon in the coverage read this cycle.
