Downpour Floods Durroville

Tremendous thunderstorms over the east valley have caused major flooding in Thermal and Mecca. We have live “First Alert Storm Team Coverage” on the damage from the storm. The downpour drenched Durroville and other surrounding mobile home parks.

Emergency task forces conducted swift-water evaluations, since early this morning after a storm cell moved over Mecca overnight.
Fire Captain, Scott Visyak says, “It just unleashed like crazy, causing havoc through the community here. We’ve seen flooding we haven’t seen in over 7 years, talking to residents in the area.”

Mecca resident, David Jimenez says, “I don’t know, I can’t explain because its the first time it happens and it rains a lot. I got scared at first.”

The storm left residents of Durroville and St. Anthony’s mobile home parks literally sweeping water from their porches, wearing rubber boots and even plastic grocery bags on their feet. Durroville looks to be hit the hardest. Visyak says, “Part of that mobile home park is without power and part of it is, so we’re trying to access the situation over there with sewage, water and electric.”

At St. Anthony’s, power is also a concern, with this electrical panel flooded. Resident, Leo Gonzalez says, “We have to clear the panel because it had been dirty and it’s where we have electrical stuff, its 100-240 volts.”

Just down the street, a river of water flows down Pierce street. You can see Avenue 69 and Pierce is completely flooded, with one neighborhood trying to dig out. The water is 2 feet deep in the general vicinity.

The county is working to open up drains and clear debris, to get the water to start flowing toward the Salton Sea.

The American Red Cross has opened an evacuation center at the Mecca Family and Farm Workers Services Facility at 91275 Avenue 66.