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Officials Assess Valley Flood Control After Record-Breaking Rainfall

Scottsdale Greenbelt
(Photo by Nick Blumberg - KJZZ)
Flooding at Scottsdale Greenbelt near Roosevelt and 78th St looking west.

Severe flooding shut down interstates, stranded motorists and caused huge traffic backups around the Valley on Monday. But despite the problems, the Maricopa County Flood Control District’s 140 structures and 22 dams were operating normally.

Chief Engineer Bill Wiley said crews were sent out to every one of those structures to check their integrity and make sure they weren’t clogged.

“After this is over, we need to re-look at those structures and look at other areas of need, and that’s going to be a critical assessment throughout the county, not just in the city of Phoenix," Wiley said.

Monday's rainfall broke the previous calendar day record, set in 1939.

Nick Blumberg was a senior field correspondent at KJZZ from 2010 to 2014.