Tempe mayor signs state of emergency, wants federal aid for locals impacted by storm damage

PHOENIX — Tempe Mayor Corey Woods declared a state of emergency Wednesday after a powerful microburst tore through the city Monday, ripping roofs off buildings and toppling trees onto homes and businesses.

“We had unprecedented damage,” Woods said in a Wednesday morning announcement posted to YouTube.

The storm left nine apartment buildings and several homes uninhabitable, closed multiple public parks, saw emergency calls surge from the usual 80 to 170 and caused a major disruption to the city’s power grid. 

“Over 22,000 people lost power at one point, 130 residents were displaced and there was countless damage to businesses and residences throughout the city of Tempe,” Woods said.

The storm delivered 0.75 inches of rain in minutes and winds up to 90 mph, capping a wet weekend marked by remnants of Hurricanes Priscilla and Raymond, which moved north from Mexico’s west coast.

Why Tempe mayor signed state of emergency after microburst, storm damage

“Signing this declaration will allow us to access funds necessary to assist in speeding up the cleanup and helping to restore things as they were in our community,” he added.

If approved, the city could receive Small Business Administration loans to help residents and business owners recover losses not covered by insurance.

To qualify for federal aid, officials are assessing damage to identify uninsured and underinsured losses. Survey teams from the city, county and state will continue evaluating the hardest-hit neighborhoods throughout the week.

Residents are encouraged to submit damage reports to ensure their losses are included.

Officials stressed that the data will be used solely to secure recovery resources for affected areas.

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