Shea Boulevard in Phoenix reopens after storm damage repairs
Aug 7, 2017, 7:52 AM | Updated: 12:03 pm
(Twitter Photo/@apsFYI)
(Twitter Photo/@apsFYI)
PHOENIX — A weekend of heavy lifting finally cleared the mess left behind by a storm, allowing for the reopening Monday of heavily-used Shea Boulevard.
One of the main east-west thoroughfares in northeast Phoenix and Scottsdale had to be shut down Friday between 44th Street and State Route 51 after a storm the previous night.
REOPENED: SR 51 southbound at Shea: Traffic can now go eastbound on Shea. NB to WB Shea will also open shortly. #PhxTraffic
— Arizona DOT (@ArizonaDOT) August 7, 2017
Power poles and trees went down in the blustery weather. Arizona Public Service utilities sent crews to repair and/or replace at least 15 downed power poles and other damage.
“The wind was really bad for a brief period and then it just rained,” Melinda Smith, who lives in the area, said. “Everything happened when that wind happened. It happened within 45 minutes here.”
Crews worked into the night all weekend, but some customers in the area were still without power late Sunday afternoon.
If you’re in the Shea/36th St. area and your outage lasts over an hour, please let us know.
— APS (@apsFYI) August 7, 2017
The state highway department announced eastbound lanes on the street were accessible again around 4:30 a.m.
Weather this week is expected to be drier and temperatures hotter. The National Weather Service forecast a high of 111 degrees in the Valley on Wednesday.
