Large storm rolls in from west, hits Maricopa County
Sep 27, 2014, 2:38 PM | Updated: Sep 28, 2014, 1:47 pm
Update (6:15 p.m.): The Scottsdale Fire Department reported that sandbags are available for Scottsdale residents to assist in flood prevention at the North Corporation Yard at 90th Street and San Salvador Drive, as well as the Scottsdale Police District 1 building at 7601 E McKellips Rd.
Update (5:45 p.m.): A flash flood warning is in effect for Maricopa and Pinal counties until 8:12 p.m.
Update (4:45 p.m.): Interstate 17 has reopened in both directions at Buckeye Road in Phoenix following flooding that had closed the highway, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation. The Greenway Road underpass at I-17 remains closed.
A large storm associated with an eastern-moving cold front hit the Valley hard Saturday, causing power outages and flash flooding in various areas.
Cities in western Maricopa county were first slammed, with Litchfield Park reportedly receiving more than 1.1 inches of rain in a span of less than half an hour. Gusts of up to 60 mph in velocity slammed structures in the affected areas, as already hazardous roadways suffered from fallen trees and scattered debris.
As the storm moved in to central and downtown Phoenix, residents reported scattered power outages.
Dozens of powerlines were seen fallen across the Valley.
Outages in other parts of the Valley were also reported. Salt River Project told KTAR that approximately 31,000 people were without power as of 4:15 p.m. on Saturday.
Air travel has also been affected by the storm. Takeoffs and landings were halted at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport from 2:30-3:30 Saturday afternoon due to winds and heavy rain, and more than 40 flights on their way to Phoenix were diverted to other airports.
People flying out of Sky Harbor or picking people up this afternoon or evening are advised to check flight statuses before coming to the airport.
High winds caused some damage to the roof in the baggage claim area and some gate areas of Terminal 2, but all three Sky Harbor terminals remain operational.
Minor damage was reported to five parked commercial aircraft — four from Southwest Airlines and one from United Airlines.
Earlier, the Sky Harbor air control tower was reportedly evacuated due to dangers related to the storm’s high-powered wind gusts.
Earlier in the afternoon, as the storm made its mark on the west Valley, winds were clocked at over 100 mph in Glendale.
#PSR GLENDALE,AZ (GEU) ASOS reports gust of 93.3 knots (107.4 mph) from SW @ 2110Z http://t.co/NIRGtHUUpX
— IEMBot PSR (@iembot_psr) September 27, 2014
Flooding, meanwhile, closed I-17 in both directions near Buckeye Road. The Greenway Road underpass at I-17 also closed from floodwaters.
