TAMPA, Fla. - The City of Tampa is upgrading its stormwater equipment with a new Spyder machine designed to expedite ditch clearing and maintain its stormwater system.
Tampa stormwater equipment upgrades
What we know:
City officials say City council approved $650,000 in funding to purchase a second Spyder excavator. The city will have two machines in operation, but explains that the original Spyder machine is aging.
The Spyder has hydraulic legs and specialized wheels that stabilize the excavator on steep slopes and tricky ditches that a standard excavator cannot reach easily.
City officials say Tampa has about 200 miles of stormwater ditches.
They say grass clippings, yard debris and trash can clog the ditches and cause the stormwater system to overflow when there's a lot of rain.
By cleaning out these ditches, it creates a clear drainage line from local neighborhoods to prevent water from overflowing and flooding areas.
Tampa ditch regrading project
By the numbers:
City crews have regraded 42,000 feet of ditches so far, which equals about eight miles.
The city says that's more than double the amount of ditch grading completed last year.
The city aims to regrade its entire 200-mile stormwater system within seven years.
Officials noted that any major storm can overwhelm drainage infrastructure if ditches remain blocked.
Local flood prevention efforts
What we don't know:
The city hasn't indicated whether additional machines will be purchased in future budget cycles.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from a news conference with Tampa city officials.