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Lee County Department of Public Safety

Lee County deployed a turnkey, modular network of real-time water-level gauges for real-time visibility across rivers, streams, and canals.

 

From hurricanes to flash floods, it provides the county with real-time visibility of rising and falling water levels so leaders can act quickly and safely.

When the first street bridge was being shut down, we were able to talk about it in real time. I was able to redirect my reporter to come in from the south and so we were able to also protect our vehicles. 

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- Katie Walls, FOX 4 WFTX

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â–¶ Watch this moment (02:24)

The Story

Lee County needed real-time visibility not just along the coast, but also across rivers, streams, and inland neighborhoods. With Hohonu’s rapid deployment platform, the county deployed 11 new gauges in just three weeks, including sites installed directly before Hurricanes Helene and Milton.

The same system used for hurricanes has continued to pay dividends for inland flash flooding. In August 2025, gauges on St. James Island detected rapid rainfall-driven flooding, with data shared live to NWSChat so emergency managers and forecasters could align warnings with on-the-ground conditions.

11

Initial Gauge Deployments

3 Weeks

Deployment Time Period

19

Gauge Expansion After Successful Initial Period

Problem

  • Vulnerable to both storm surge and inland flash flooding, but lacked real-time ground-truth data.

  • No reliable way to confirm if water levels were rising or plateauing across rivers, canals, and neighborhoods.

  • Emergency managers needed data they could share quickly with partners like NWS to guide warnings and decisions.

Stakeholders

  • Department of Public Safety

    • Funding sensor deployments​

  • Natural Resources

    • Partnered in installations​

  • Broadcast Meteorologists

    • Referencing Hohonu's dashboard in real-time to inform public communications​

  • National Weather Service / NOAA

    • Ingesting Hohonu's data statewide (in process)​

Solution

Outcomes

  • Real-time inland awareness: Gauges at St. James City have provided visibility during multiple flash flood events, including ~1 ft flash flooding in August, 2025 —data that was shared live through NWSChat to confirm radar estimates and guide warnings.

  • Operational wins: broadcast meteorologist rerouted staff around a bridge closure and protected vehicles (the general public has access to this data because Hohonu's public dashboard)

  • Stronger public confidence: Scientifically rigorous, transparent data underpinned every alert and built trust across agencies and residents.

  • A scalable model: A network design that nearby communities can adopt—strengthening inter-agency partnerships and extending protection to both coastal and inland flood risks.

Solution

  • Deployed a turnkey Hohonu network, adding 11 gauges across the coast as well as inland

    • Includes deploying 2 sites in the week between Hurricane Helene and Milton

  • Used live dashboards to track conditions and time lags/progressions across the network.

  • Sharing the same data with NWS/NOAA and local media for consistent, location-specific messaging

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