Mayor Tours Flooded Neighborhood, Questions Levee Breach Cause

El Paso Mayor John Cook was greeted with hugs and handshakes Tuesday by residents on Ramos Court near Ascarate Park in south-central El Paso.

Thirty homes were flooded and damaged after a Franklin canal levee breached early Saturday morning.

Donning dust masks, residents guided Cook through their homes and showed him piles of belongings and debris stacked in their front yards.

“I’m very concerned about that,” Cook told ABC-7. “It’s going to become a health issue if we leave this stuff piled up out here on the street.”

Cook said he realized residents had been told to leave the piles where they are for insurance adjusters but hoped to work with the insurance companies to see if photos would suffice so the debris could be removed by city crews.

Cook also said he was working with the city manager’s office to possibly set up a shelter for those who have been unable to sleep in their homes.

“These houses are definitely not something that I think people are actually able to go into in their present condition,” he said.

Regino Espinoza told ABC-7 his father’s home is one of those in that “present condition,” adding that the mayor’s support means a lot.

“For him to come out here, it really shows me what kind of person he is, that he cares,” said Espinoza..

The El Paso County Water Improvement District, which oversees the levee, has attributed the breach to holes dug by area gophers.

The mayor told ABC-7 Tuesday that he takes issue with that.

“It’s funny that there was a utility vehicle, a maintenance vehicle out there hours before (the levee) broke down,” Cook said.

“We need to be honest with the folks out here and let them know what really happened.”