The Challenge
In 2009, an extreme weather event unleashed over 27 inches of rain on the Laurel Creek Watershed. The flooding inundated approximately 79 buildings and several critical roads. With the assistance of FEMA and coordination with various City departments, an upgrade project was undertaken to address not only the flooding issues but provide the ability to upgrade utilities within the area, enhance park elements, and bring the existing roadway up to current city standards.
The Results
Over the course of 3 days in September 2017, Hurricane Irma dropped nearly 9 inches of rain over central and eastern Florida. During this period, the Central Park Lakes received 190 ac-ft of inflow. With Opti's real-time continuous monitoring and adaptive control solution, the lakes were lowered in anticipation of this historic hurricane, protecting residents and property from flooding.
The Solution
In an effort to further minimize the risk of flooding and to fully take advantage of the storage potential associated with the five interconnected lakes, the City implemented Opti's forecast-based control solution. Opti software predicts stormwater runoff ahead of wet weather and uses that information to create extra storage capacity in the Central Park Lakes. In the 48 hours leading up to storms, Opti can command a pump station to release up to 70 acre-feet of water to prevent the Lakes from overflowing into the surrounding neighborhood.
Crisis Response
In the days leading up to Hurricane Dorian in 2019, Opti engineers notified the City that one of the pumps at the Laurel Creek Pump Station had malfunctioned. City operators used the Opti dashboard to override the pump failure (in orange) and safely prevent an overflow during the storm.
