With hurricane season here and the looming threats of extreme rain and flooding, city crews are hard at work giving our drainage ditches a serious upgrade through “ditch grading.”
By clearing out debris and reshaping slopes, they are helping stormwater flow where it’s supposed to go -- protecting homes, roads, and public infrastructure from flooding. Tampa has nearly 200 miles of ditches, and so far this year, city crews have pulled out more than 3,400 tons of debris, about the weight of 2000 average sedans! This ensures the ditches are functioning properly and at maximum capacity.
The work does not stop there. Through a $500,000 contract approved by City Council, an additional contractor is joining the effort, boosting manpower to clear more ditches, faster. Typically, the City of Tampa has at least three in-house ditch grading crews working in the field.
"While flooding can never be fully prevented, we're doing all we can as a city to ensure we're in the best position should we be impacted extreme weather," said Mayor Jane Castor. "And we cannot stress it enough -- all residents and visitors should be hurricane ready, which means having a plan, having a kit, and following all emergency orders."
For months, the City has been in “all-hands-on-deck” mode for stormwater maintenance. That means performing maintenance six days a week, borrowing staff from other departments, bringing in contractors, readying backup generators, and more. It’s a massive team effort.
Additional Maintenance Data Since Jan. 1:
- Nearly 35,000 feet of ditches graded
- 145,000 feet of stormwater pipes cleaned // 890 tons of debris removed (in-house + contractor)
- Nearly 600 feet of stormwater pipe replaced
- 13,500 curb miles swept // 3,050 tons of debris removed by street sweeping
- 302 cave-ins repaired (in-house + contractor)
- 1,215 structures repaired (in-house + contractor)
Additionally, the City has launched a brand-new Stormwater Interactive Dashboard at tampa.gov/mobility. The dashboard highlights stormwater work completed in the last 180 days. Users can click on colored dots to see specific jobs, including where and when they were completed. It’s a one-stop shop for tracking crews' progress