Levee Breach In South Central El Paso Floods Nearby Homes

“It’s very shocking, we never expected this,” said Ron Navegas as he looked out at the flooded south central El Paso neighborhood where his sister lives. “It’s amazing. In a matter of 15 minutes the water came rushing into her house.”

Fire department officials say a levee breach next to the Franklin Canal flooded approximately 35 homes Saturday at around 10 in the morning. The breach was contained in about an hour, but the murky water made a mess for rescue crews and residents.

“We got a lot of damage to our house,” said Antonio Martinez.

Officials said earlier, maintenance crews had been patching up gaps in the levee. They offered no official explanation as to why it breached, releasing waves of water. “Yes sir, it was pretty fast,” said Martinez.

Rescue crews evacuated about 100 people. The neighborhood has quite a few elderly residents, many of whom have health issues. Irene Chacon made sure to grab an extra oxygen tank form her home before ebing escorted to dry land. “I have to have my oxygen or else I will die,” said Chacon.

Though some homeowners are devastated about the damage, others are just thankful no one was seriously hurt. “They did a very good job in the rescue,” said Navegas. “After they got all the people out, they rescued all the pets.”

Some of the displaced families will stay with friends or relatives for the time being. Others are at a nearby motel thanks to help from the Red Cross. It’s unclear exactly when they’ll be able to return to their homes. The Health Department is assessing the damage and potential health risks after the flooding. Fire officials said some of the houses may be damaged beyond repair.

Neighbors said they’ll often see gophers dig holes near the canal, which could be making the levees weaker.