Flood warning issued for Alafia River

LITHIA (FOX 13) - Several days of heavy rains have prompted the National Weather Service to issue a flood warning for residents living on the Alafia River.  The river reached 12.5 feet Sunday afternoon and is expected to rise to around 13.1 feet Sunday evening. 

Residents in the area say they're used to the flooding, but are taking precautions to make sure they are safe. 

"We're moving everything up, off the deck, you know anything that's loose," homeowner Marion Price said Sunday afternoon.

The Price family has been watching the river rise for days. Their plan involves a generator, and having a canoe ready, something that they learned from Hurricane Irma. 

"If you can picture it, we were actually canoeing off the desk, that's how high the water was," said Price.

This is the first time in nearly 40 years that the river has crested in May.