 Severe hurricanes in 1926 and 1928 caused catastrophic damage and flooding from Lake Okeechobee that prompted the Army Corps of Engineers to build a dike around the lake . Further floods in 1947 prompted an unprecedented construction of canals throughout southern Florida . Following another population boom after World War II , and the creation of the Central and Southern Florida Flood Control Project , the Everglades was divided into sections separated by canals and water control devices that delivered water to agricultural and newly developed urban areas . However , in the late 1960s , following a proposal to construct a massive airport next to Everglades National Park , national attention turned from developing the land to restoring the Everglades . 
