TxDOT, Walmart clearing clogged culverts

when it rains in el paso — it important that drains and canals are clean and cleared. anchor stephanie valle looks at what’s being done to fix a major drainage system in northeast el paso — in this abc-seven listens: a viewer reached out to me on my facebook page — telling me she was concerned about one canal in particular. lori sent me pictures of culverts — that are clogged with rocks and dirt. lori said, “where is the wate going to go if this is not fixed?” the canal in question runs alongside gateway north near transmountain, next to the walmart supercenter. lori told me she was especially concerned about the blockage — because this is the same ditch where amber lastrega, a homeless woman, drowned during a severe hail storm in april of 2014. the spokeswoman for tx-dot told me — this project is being handled by tx-dot and walmart. tx-dot said it is only responsible for five of the culverts in that area — and that the agency had asked the retailer to clear the culverts on its property. walmart has already hired a contractor to handle the job. when we stopped by this week — we saw crews on site, clearing out the canal. i reached out to the contractor to find out when they started the job. matt jackson with retention pond services, inc., out of north carolina, declined to comment. only telling me that his crews will be finished by thursday. tx-dot said once walmart’s culverts are cleared, tx-dot will handle its area. so, looks like the canal will be clear — in the event we ever get significant rainfall this monsoon. sv, abc-7.