El Paso Water helps residents prepare for possible heavy rain & flooding with free sand bags
EL PASO, Texas -- Cars were lining up at El Paso Water's Eastside Stormwater Operations Center Friday afternoon to pick up sandbags in anticipation of heavy rainfall.
"I’m just going to use these sandbags as a precautionary measure to protect, just in case," said El Paso resident Justin Kleist. He was picking up sandbags to protect his west El Paso home from possible flooding.
Sandbags are often used as makeshift dams to prevent floodwater from pouring into homes and businesses. El Paso water has been handing them out free of charge, as long as people picking them up can provide a Texas ID or an El Paso Water bill.
El Paso residents can pick the sandbags up at three different locations across the city. The Eastside Stormwater Operations, located at 4801 Fred Wilson Ave, is handing them out in the northeast. The Artcraft Booster Station, located at 7830 Paseo Del Norte, is where westside residents can pick them up. People in the lower valley can pick up their sandbags at Blackie Chesher Park, located at 9292 Escobar Dr.
El Paso Water has expanded its pickup hours to 8 a.m. through 8 p.m. this weekend, August 20th and 21st, due to the anticipation of heavy rain.
Las Cruces residents, who are also expected to receive heavy rainfall and possible flooding, can pick up sandbags at fire stations 1 through 6, as well as fire station 8. The Doña Ana County and City of Las Cruces Office of Emergency Management are also giving out 25 empty bags per household that can be filled with sand.
