Monster storm on Thursday July 10, 2008

  This storm really didn't bother me. The wind was blowing so hard I could almost lean into it. Almost. Just a little rain, so I stayed at Circle K.

When I went home it rained some, well enough to make the water flow in the creek I live in. So I pulled my campain sign to the side of the creek and put it over my head to keep dry. My cardboard sheet was pretty much wet when I got there.

I woke up at 4 to the sound of hard rain. At least it sounded like hard rain that was pounding on the campain sign I was sleeping under.

At 4:30 I walked to the bus stop thru the rain. While it sounded like real hard rain on my campain sign it wasn't that bad as I walked thru it. But I did get soaked and froze when I ate breakfast.


Source

Huge storm wreaks morning havoc

Jul. 11, 2008 08:45 AM

Samantha Hauser, Ali Pfauser and 12 News

Valley residents can expect to get wet Friday as the monsoon thunderstorms that soaked the Valley Thursday evening continue through the weekend.

The Thursday monsoon was one of the wettest in a decade, flooding roads, knocking out power, temporarily closing Sky Harbor and stranding some motorists.

Friday, a number of roads in Queen Creek were closed after being flooded or covered with mud. Power Road, Riggs Road, Hawes Road and Sossaman Road were all closed at Sonoqui Wash, according to the town's Public Works Department.

In Scottsdale, roads along Indian Bend were also flooded. Jackrabbit Road was closed at Hayden, McCormick Parkway and Indian Bend Road were closed at Scottsdale Road, and Osborn Road was closed at Hayden Road.

Drivers are reminded that under Arizona law, drivers who ignore or move barricades could be fined a minimum of $2,000 and pay for the cost of their rescue.

About 1,700 SRP customers across the Valley were without power Friday morning in Mesa, Tempe, Scottsdale, and Apache Junction and Glendale. Crews hope to have power restored by 10 a.m. All the outages are storm related.

About 8,000 customers were affected at the height of the storm Thursday night.

All of the outages were related, and crews were hoping to have the power restored by 10 a.m. Friday morning.

Thursday night, more than two inches of rain poured over some cities, temporarily closing runways at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and flooding areas of Mesa, north Phoenix and the West Valley.

Rising water forced the Department of Public Safety to shut down Interstate 17 at Buckeye Road about 10 p.m., spokesman Bart Graves said.

A high of 94 degrees is expected for Friday, and below-normal temperatures are expected through the weekend with highs of 97 degrees on Saturday and 101 degrees on Sunday.

The Hazardous Weather Outlook issued by the National Weather Service will be in effect until at least Thursday, as the chance of thunderstorms continues into next week.

Source

July 10, 2008 - 8:29PM

Updated: July 10, 2008 - 11:30PM

Strong storm carries into Friday

Katie McDevitt, Eddi Trevizo, John Leptich, Tribune

Wind gusts up to 60 miles per hour swept through the East Valley Thursday night carrying debris and dust across freeways and streets while pelting the land with rainfall.

Rain continued in many parts of the Valley on Friday morning and more rain and thunderstorms are forecast for of the day.

Mesa saw the most rain with nearly three inches. Flooding forced several road closures overnight. Unbridged crossings of Indian Bend Wash in the Hayden Road area of Scottsdale remain closed.

Scottsdale road closures include Indian Bend Road east of Scottsdale Road, McCormick Parkway at Scottsdale Road, Jackrabbit Trail at Hayden Road and Osborn Road west of Hayden.

A portion of Power Road near Ocotillo Road in the southeast Valley is covered with flowing water.

Approximately 1,500 people in Apache Junction, Mesa, Gilbert, Chandler and Scottsdale, were without power early Friday morning. SRP said it expected to have power to those individuals by 10 a.m. APS said about 400 of its customers were also without power, but theirs should be back by about 9 a.m.

According to the National Weather Service, Scottsdale, Mesa and Phoenix were hit the hardest when the storm began about 7:45 p.m. Thursday evening.

Rain clouds dumped about ½ inch of rain in 15 minutes at Falcon Field, said Jessica Nolte, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service.

By 10 p.m., Mesa police had been called to 22 different locations for traffic control, manholes being lifted by rising water, overflowing sewers, blacked out traffic lights and flooding.

About the same time, McKellips Road near Loop 202 had received more than two-and-a-half inches of rain, according to the Maricopa County Flood Control district rain gauge.

Parts of Apache Junction received 1.46 inches, Scottsdale received .35 inches up north and .31 in the south, Tempe received .24 inches, Chandler received .08 inches and in Gilbert between Guadalupe and Lindsay roads, the gauge showed .59 inches.

The sudden and heavy onset of weather knocked down several power lines in Scottsdale, Tempe and Phoenix and stranded cars driving through the area of Broadway and Sossaman roads in Mesa.

In downtown Mesa, tree branches broke off and landed on parked cars, and in Tempe a light pole caught fire, possibly from lightning.

Airplanes at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport were grounded from 8:15 p.m. to 9:05 p.m., according to airport spokesman Michael Set.

A customer eating a bag of chips at Oasis Raspados, a snow cone and snack shop on Main Street near Hobson, said she was going to stay at the restaurant until the storm calmed down. "Driving out in the rain is worrying, just because visibility isn't too good," said Cynthia Palafox, "and sometimes the puddles can make the road dangerous."

An employee at the same restaurant, Martina Acosta, said she usually enjoys the rain.

The storm developed over the Roosevelt Lake area and then began to build over the Phoenix metropolitan area, Nolte said.

Flash flood warnings remained in effect throughout the East Valley Thursday evening and into Friday morning until 12:45 a.m., said a spokesperson for the National Weather Service Phoenix Office. Severe thunderstorm watch in Maricopa County ended at 10 p.m., according to authorities.

Scattered rainstorms throughout the Valley were expected to last until 4 to 5 a.m., however officials said wind damage and hail advisories have expired.

Meteorologists predict a 50 percent chance of showers Friday between 11 a.m. and 11 p.m., a 30 to 40 percent chance on Saturday and a 20 percent chance on Sunday. The high temperatures for the weekend will be in the low 90s. A hazardous weather outlook is in effect until Wednesday.

 

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