MESA, AZ — Julie Egelhoff Honea woke up at 3 a.m. Sunday morning to a loud “kaboom” and her three dogs barking.
She got up and stepped in water.
A river of water poured from the backyard into her home, soaking her floors and walls with mud.
“I had water coming out my garage,” she told ABC15 as she surveyed the damage Sunday afternoon.
Neighbors in a subdivision near Ellsworth and Broadway roads say at least four homes, possibly more, were extensively damaged in the latest round of storms.
Craig Pittman, her next-door neighbor, has lived in his home for 15 years. He estimates the water rushing in his yard was “easily” two- to three-feet deep. The water flowed all Sunday morning and into the afternoon, he said. The flood cut deep gorges in his front yard, pushing the river rock from his front yard into the street.
"I know for sure my carpets are totally soaked,” he said. “My dining room, kitchen all soaked out. Same thing in my bedroom.”
Neighbors had lots of questions about what happens next.
“I've never been through something like this before,” Pittman said.
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Neighbors told ABC15 they called their insurance companies and left messages for the homeowner’s association. Neighbors told ABC15 they believe a culvert behind the homes got clogged with debris, knocking down their fences and pushing water into their yards. They said the HOA is responsible for maintaining the culvert.
ABC15 also reached out to the HOA, but has not yet heard back.
As Sunday drew to a close, Egelhoff Honea struggled to hold her emotions in check.
“I’m at my wit’s end, and I’m trying not to cry. I’ve been doing a lot of that all day,” she said.
She was grateful for the help of neighbors and friends.
One immediate concern was finding a temporary place for her three dogs, two cats, and four kittens. She hopes to adopt out the kittens. She wants to keep the other pets together while she figures out what will happen with her house.
"I’m trying to find people who will help me foster my animals,” she said. “I don’t want to lose my animals.”
Email ABC15 Investigator Anne Ryman at: anne.ryman@abc15.com, call her at 602-685-6345, or connect on X, formerly known as Twitter, and Facebook.
