State of emergency declared for 3 Pinal County areas after thousands left without power

PINAL COUNTY, AZ (3TV/CBS 5) -- A state of emergency was declared on Tuesday after powerful monsoon storms knocked out power for thousands in three Pinal County areas. The Pinal County Board of Supervisors made the declaration during a meeting just after 4 p.m. It follows the City of Eloy declaring a state of emergency on Monday. The declaration covers Eloy, Toltec and Arizona City.

Because of the possible loss of water and residents not having shelter from the heat, Eloy Mayor Micah Powell declared a state of emergency. “The storm has caused many areas to suffer severe damage, which is beyond the capability of the City of Eloy to recover from and provide the necessary relief, financial assistance, or repair without assistance from Pinal County and the State of Arizona,” reads the declaration.

Many residents opted to stay outside because it was cooler than inside their homes. “You start sweating right when you walk in,” said Katrina Antone. She was among the many trying to stay cool, setting up a baby pool outside for her kids in the triple-digit heat.

Others spent the night inside the Toltec Middle School gym as hotels in Casa Grande were reportedly booked up. The Eloy Fire Department also provided residents with cold water and dry ice to try and save their frozen food from spoiling. “I would’ve probably lost all my perishables. My meats, you know, right now at this time of turmoil, it’s tough to buy food,” said Christopher Sharp.

Cristy Chacon told Arizona’s Family she’s been living in her car with her dog to try and escape the heat. She says her home is between 90 and 100 degrees inside. “It’s hot, it’s hot; we’ve been in the car all day yesterday and last night you know to cool off, so its very hot,” Chacon said.

Sunday’s storm left over 10,000 people without power. As of Wednesday morning, Pinal County officials say power has been restored to Eloy and should be restored in Arizona City by 5 p.m.

The Arizona Department of Corrections reported that generators were running and providing power for the A/C units at La Palma Correctional Center in Eloy. Nearby Red Rock Correctional Center also lost power but power has since been restored to both locations.

Richard Rosales, an APS spokesperson, says the company hasn’t seen this type of damage to power lines in decades. Rosales adds they’ve pulled from resources all over Arizona to get the power on faster than what was predicted. “If we didnt have the type of resources from all around the state, this could have went on for days maybe weeks because the local crews would have to do all the work and the damage was extensive,” said Rosales.

Volunteers are continuing to pass out dry ice to residents to help them stay cool. If you buy dry ice, save your receipts to get reimbursed. Water cases and ice will continued to be passed out to residents Wednesday through Friday from 2:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. Stop by if you need ice:

• Eloy City Hall - 595 N. Center Street, Eloy, AZ.

One cooling center also remain open:

• Toltec Middle School - 3315 N. Toltec Road, Eloy, AZ. Pets allowed.

For more information about resources, tap or click here. To check outages near you, go to outagemap.aps.com. If you need non-emergency assistance or have questions about rides to the cooling stations, call (520) 466-9201.

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