Floodwaters from torrential rains swept through central Arizona on Friday night, leaving at least three people dead and forcing some residents to climb on their roofs, officials said.
Emergency workers on Saturday morning searched for people needing rescue, as more rains were expected later in the day.
The damage was concentrated in Globe, a city of roughly 7,000 people about a 90-minute drive east of Phoenix, where heavy rains overflowed a creek and floodwaters swept away several vehicles and overwhelmed the city’s main highway.
The three victims were found in Gila County, according to Carl Melford, the county emergency manager. As of Saturday afternoon, officials had not confirmed if any people were missing.
“The devastation downtown is just unbelievable,” Mike Stapleton, Globe’s vice mayor, said at an emergency meeting on Saturday afternoon, where a disaster declaration by the city was approved. “I’ve never seen anything like this.”
Images from Globe posted on social media showed a gush of water pushing submerged vehicles down a road. Others captured damaged roads, flipped cars and a morass of muddy debris. At least 1,000 tanks from a propane tank facility south of the city were swept away, said Al Gameros, the mayor of Globe, raising concerns of a hazmat threat.
Officials said crews were checking every vehicle among the debris for people. Rescue teams from neighboring counties and the state were assisting with the search, Mr. Gameros said in his social media post, adding that he had been in contact with the office of Gov. Katie Hobbs.
At the emergency meeting, council members said they had received reports of survivors who had been trapped in flooded buildings.
“People were climbing on roofs,” Mr. Stapleton said.
Gila County officials asked residents in Globe, the town of Miami and other neighboring communities to shelter in place as emergency crews worked and assessed the hazmat threat.
Officials in Globe said they were still assessing the damage but signaled confidence that the bridges over the creeks that had swelled were able to remain stable. But showers were likely on Saturday afternoon, and there was a 40 percent chance that thunderstorms would continue in the area in the evening, according to The National Weather Service.
Orlando Mayorquín is a Times reporter covering California. He is based in Los Angeles.
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