Road crews preparing for Monsoon 2023, how you can prepare

TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) - It’s less than a week ahead of Monsoon 2023 and the Tucson Department of Transportation and Mobility is preparing for Operation Splash.

From now until June 14th, more than 500 barricades will be placed at 150 problem spots across Tucson.

“Our main goal, again as the Department of Transportation and Mobility is to keep the public safe,” said Amanda Valenzuela, Public Information Coordinator, City of Tucson Department of Transportation and Mobility.

To do that, crews have to make sure washes are cleared and barricades are placed ahead of the storms.

“Our crews have been clearing out flow lines, clearing out excess debris, to allow stormwater to flow through it,” said Valenzuela.

Marana and Pima County just opened their free sandbag locations, so residents like Jake Kromer can prepare. He calls it the calm before the storm.

“I just heard online that stations opened up and just figured with past flooding in the past couple of years we’ve had, I wanted to get a head start on it and be prepared for anything that happens,” said Kromer.

Tucson will open its sandbag locations at Hi Corbett Field ahead of our first big forecasted storm.

In the meantime, road crews want to remind *you to never enter a flooded roadway. If you see a barricade blocking a road, turn around, don’t drown!

Not only is it unsafe, but it’s also illegal.

“We want to make sure that you’re alert, and paying attention to these barricade signs and not enter a roadway if you see those signs,” said Valenzuela.

Something you can do right now while we’re still dry is scope out different routes around town, so you know more than one way to get where you need to go.

Starting June 15, road crews will be on-call 24/7 through mid-September. If you see flooding or debris in the middle of the road during the monsoon, you can always call their customer service line at (520) 791-3154.

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