'Quite a setback': How epic flooding impacted Esposito's Garden Center
Esposito's Garden Center is still recovering from Thursday morning's storms that dumped several inches of rain and caused pockets of flooding throughout Tallahassee and the Big Bend.
Located on Capital Circle Northeast, the rear of the property sustained the most damage when two on-site creeks overflowed. The area beyond the bridge near the creek was submerged, which includes the tree and shrub holding area.
The storm's impact comes at the busiest time of the year. Clean up and recovery could take one to two weeks, said Mary Rock, general manager at Esposito's.
"The bridges were underwater, so you couldn't even see the bridges in the back of the property," Rock said, on Friday morning. "You can you can see where the water broke through and the creek."
It's not uncommon for flooding to occur at Esposito's after a heavy downpour, Rock said, but this was beyond normal. She couldn't say for certain the estimated cost of damages; she and staff are still assessing.
"We're still pulling things out of the mud and out of the creek," Rock said. "It'll be quite a setback for us, that's for sure."
The garden center is one of many businesses affected by the storm that dropped up to 14 inches of rain on the capital. Many businesses were left cleaning up debris and damaged materials.
The Best Buy on Apalachee Parkway was forced to close Thursday after a pipe burst overnight and soaked the carpet throughout the store. It partially reopened Friday, allowing individual customers to come in one-by-one accompanied by a Best Buy employee. Dozens of dehumidifiers and fans were running throughout the store.
Contact Economic Development Reporter TaMaryn Waters at tlwaters@tallahassee.com and follow @TaMarynWaters on X.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Esposito's Garden Center cleans up after storm, flooding
