Hurricane Nicole crept up on the Treasure Coast, just south of Vero Beach, overnight with howling winds and heavy rainfall. The storm was soon downgraded to a tropical storm as it veered northwest across Florida, meteorologists said.
Nicole flooded several streets in Vero Beach, including Royal Palm Boulevard at the Indian River Boulevard intersection, the eastbound lanes on the Alma Lee Loy Bridge and MacWilliams Park and Boat Ramp, according to Vero Beach police. The Alma Lee Loy Bridge remains closed, officials said.
Heavy winds from the storm damaged boardwalks at beaches and washed away sand from the shore.
The storm has brought 1.90 inches of rainfall to the Vero Beach area since Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service in Melbourne. More than 3,000 Florida Power & Light Co. customers were without power Thursday evening, according to the FPL power outage map.
Here are some pictures that show Hurricane Nicole’s impact in Indian River County.
Photos by Joshua Kodis
