Hospital surrounded by 3 sides of bay water in Tampa went viral, avoided

What protects a building from a storm surge? Apparently, an AquaFence.

A day before an “extremely large” Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida as a powerful Category 4 storm, workers at Tampa General Hospital erected a blue-and-black barricade known as the AquaFence.

It encircled the vulnerable Tampa General Hospital campus to protect areas of the campus against storm surge and flooding. TGH, the region’s lone Level 1 trauma center, lies surrounded on three sides by bay waters at the northern tip of Davis Islands in downtown Tampa.

The hospital’s water-impermeable AquaFence is engineered to withstand storm surge up to 15 feet above sea level, a Tampa General Hospital said in a news release. Crews used metal anchors to bolt fence panels to the asphalt this week near the hospital parking deck and elsewhere to reinforce the barrier.

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As of Friday, Sept. 27, a day after Helene made landfall in Perry, Florida, and caused flash flooding in the western part of the state, the hospital’s vulnerable Level 1 trauma center remained dry.

“We can confirm the AquaFence worked effectively to prevent the storm surge in Tampa Bay from flooding the TGH main campus on Davis Islands,” the release states.

Video of the barrier blocking a scary scene of water went viral on social media as Helene tore through Perry and other parts of the Big Bend, near Tallahassee. The video posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, shows Dustin Pasteur, vice president of facilities and construction at Tampa General, walking the perimeter around 10:30 p.m. Sept. 26. Helene made landfall at 11:10 p.m. the same night.

Tampa General Hospital's lone Level 1 trauma center lies surrounded on three sides by bay waters at the northern tip of Davis Islands in downtown Tampa. Hours before Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida as a Category 4 storm, parts of Tampa and St. Petersburg were flooded. Shown is the visitor parking garage at the hospital on Friday, Sept. 27, 2024, a day after landfall. The Level 1 trauma center remained dry, thanks to an Aquafence erected shortly before Helene's landfall. — Tampa General Hospital’s lone Level 1 trauma center lies surrounded on three sides by bay waters at the northern tip of Davis Islands in downtown Tampa. Hours before Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida as a Category 4 storm, parts of Tampa and St. Petersburg were flooded. Shown is the visitor parking garage at the hospital on Friday, Sept. 27, 2024, a day after landfall. The Level 1 trauma center remained dry, thanks to an Aquafence erected shortly before Helene’s landfall.

The visitor parking garage of Tampa General Hospital, however, did experience floodwaters. Videos showing that went viral on social media, too.

On Friday, there were several cars in the garage sitting in a pool of water, with the water reaching just below the door handles.

As of Friday aftenoon, no one was able to go in or out of the visitor parking garage.

A spokesperson said via email that the AquaFence was designed in 2019 and has worked successfully since to prevent storm surge from impacting hospital operations during major meteorological events.

In 2023, TGH officials Tampa General installed resin anchors and concrete attachment points to strengthen the barrier.

Sangalang is a lead digital producer for USA TODAY Network-Florida. Follow her on Twitter or Instagram at @byjensangalang. Support local journalism. Consider subscribing to a Florida newspaper.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Helene storm surge Tampa: Barrier kept floodwaters away from hospital

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