8/22/22 UPDATE: Crews have reopened the intersection of 83rd Avenue and Cactus Road. All power has been restored and classes are back in session for schools that were closed Friday.
—
As more storms are expected to roll into the Valley through the weekend, some communities are still trying to get the lights back on.
APS crews working in Peoria worked overnight Friday into Saturday to replace power poles, lines and restore electricity to homes. Cactus and 83rd Avenue remained closed as of Saturday morning. Peoria Police posted on Facebook early Friday morning that it will be closed for an “extended” time.
According to APS’ outage website Saturday morning, some people could be without power until Tuesday.
James Riddle was only without power for 12 hours. Though he has electricity, he’s without a roof and an awning now. There’s now just a tarp on his roof. Pieces of his awning and roof sit in his backyard.
“I heard the cracking of the awning, came out to look at it. Once it went, I kind of heard a [sound] and it was the roof peeling off. It was interesting,” Riddle said.
He’s now waiting for insurance to kick in and figure out what to do. Riddle estimates it’ll cost him $70,000 to fix, adding that awnings can be quite expensive.
Other pieces of his awning flew even further into the park behind him. Because of the storm, a big tree uprooted. A few yards away, there was a brick wall in pieces.
“It was quite the experience,” Riddle said.
Miles away from Riddle, Scott Harward looked at the damage Thursday’s storm caused. He lived right near 83rd Avenue and Cactus, where the power lines went down. That night after the storm hit, he couldn’t find a way out to the main roads.
“We didn't know what was going on. the power was out and we couldn't get out anywhere. It was crazy,” he said.
Homeowners who are still cleaning up debris and tree branches can contact the City of Peoria to have them picked up. The city said homeowners must cut the tree limbs into four-foot sections. Crews will come around and pick it up on August 27.
The city said to contact the solid waste department to schedule a pickup at 623-773-7895 or email solidwaste@peoriaaz.gov.
