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Businesses and nonprofits still cleaning up as Valley braces for more monsoon storms

Posted at 6:37 PM, Jul 23, 2022
and last updated 2022-07-23 21:37:36-04

The Valley is bracing for another round of monsoon storms, though people are still cleaning up from the weather that hit nearly a week ago.

A microburst destroyed several mobile homes and thousands were left without power in Pinal County.

"On Sunday when the storm came through, it just destroyed this place," said Cherlynn Berry, founder of a nonprofit called Two Share Foundation.

Staff at Working Dogs Rescue in Phoenix, a partner with Two Share Foundation, says Sunday was a nightmare.

"The kennels have been put back up," said Berry.

But before the storm, the kennels had roofs to shade the dogs.

"They had misting systems to help keep the dogs cooler," said trainer Alicia Via.

All of it was knocked away by the wind and some pieces were damaged by the rain.

"Each kennel had an Arctic Air Conditioner," said Via. "It all got wet and so it shorted out the charging system, so they are useless now."

They are working to weatherproof their outdoor area and learning from what happened last weekend. They are bringing in volunteers to help prepare, but staff said the work won't be finished overnight.

"It has taken since Monday morning to get to this point, and they probably have three or four more weeks to go," said Via.

Their long-term goal is to get a bigger space that has more open land.

A GoFundMe for the nonprofit has already raised over $13,000, but they said even that won't cover all of the needed expenses.

In the East Valley, the owners of Thompson's Auto Repair and Towing say they were out of town when the storm hit.

It damaged their roof, flooded their office and destroyed their phone and computer systems.

For Brian Vivian, it's still hard to talk about it because the business is a part of his family.

"Our family started business here in 1968," said Vivian through tears.

He and his wife bought the business in the '90s and have been running it ever since.

"It's very difficult," said Vivian. "But we're going to build it back up."

A week later the owners said they are still in the clean up phase. It will take 8 to 10 weeks to be fully back up and running.

With more storms expected this week, they said they are just hoping for the best.

"The roofing company, or restoration company has already put plastic up on the roof, but of course I don't know how much that plastic can hold," said Vivian.

The towing portion of their business is still running, and they will be able to use a few bays while they work on repairs.

Right now, Vivian is hoping to get through these storms and focus on a grand reopening.

"Just know we are here, and we will be back," said Vivian.

The business does have insurance, and they said they are thankful for their loyal customers.