Dona Ana County declares state of disaster

The Dona Ana County Commission declared a state of disaster on Monday for areas damaged by last week’s storms.

The board met in an emergency session to discuss the damaged areas. Commissioners voted unanimously to declare the state of disaster. This opens up access to state emergency funding.

Gov. Susana Martinez also declared a state of disaster in the state, opening up access to federal money as well.

Heavy rains literally wiped out roads throughout La Union, N.M.

A part of San Antonio Road is now just a massive pit. Some residents are calling it “San Antonio Canyon.”

“I haven’t seen storms like this probably since the 1980s,” said Travis Ludwig, a resident of La Union.

Houses line both sides of the massive pit. The corner of one house is just inches from the hole.

The woman who lives there said she’s thankful it wasn’t worse. She can’t imagine what it would have been like if the storm had destroyed her house.

“I feel really bad for some of the people that have really been affected in a bad way,” Ludwig said.

Crews have been working hard to fix the damage. Piles of dirt and construction cones block off the most damaged areas.

One worker told ABC-7 they have to drive 20 minutes away to find enough dirt for the repairs.

“I’ve noticed they already have made some quick repairs to some of the roads.I just hope that they can coordinate and facilitate and get things fixed a lot quicker because people are hurting right now,” Ludwig said.

Another resident said she’s thankful for all the help from the community and the county.