GLOBE, AZ — It’s been nearly two months since deadly flooding hit Globe and the rest of Gila County, killing three people and causing tens of millions of dollars in damage.
ABC15 spoke with Globe Mayor Al Gameros to get an update on the progress that’s been made since the September 26 flooding and the work that still needs to be done.
Last Friday, Globe mainstay La Casita reopened its doors.
While there, Mayor Gameros said the roughly 60 businesses that sustained some level of damage have already reopened. Still, it is hard for Gameros and others to forget the chilling images and sounds from the devastating flooding.
“The water was so high and you could hear people screaming,” explained Gameros. “This is the worst I have ever seen in our community… We were seeing all that success, then seeing it destroyed in half an hour.”
Many businesses have reopened and rebounded, but that’s not to say historic downtown Globe and Broad Street are completely back to normal; about half a dozen buildings remain red-tagged in need of further inspection and repairs before they can reopen.
Helping the town rebuild were thousands of volunteers who showed up within hours to help get the town back on track.
“It was amazing. The flood occurred on a Friday night, and by Sunday, it had opened up, and this whole town was full of people. Everyone is caring here when something occurs, people reach out, and people help each other when they’re in need, and that’s what I love about our community.”
Gameros says Globe has not yet received state or federal money, explaining that his town must first spend the money and then will be reimbursed.
Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs declared a state of emergency for the area in September.
Gameros says he’s already applied for aid with the state, which would reimburse his town for 75% of its expenses. He says the state will then apply for aid from FEMA at the federal level, and if approved, they’d get reimbursed for 90% of approved expenses.
Last week, a bipartisan group of Arizona lawmakers wrote a letter to President Donald Trump requesting that the funding be approved. So far, no word on how long the Trump Administration will take to make a formal decision.
In the meantime, low-cost and low-interest loans are available to businesses that qualify through the Small Business Administration. For more information, click here.
There is also a fund available for people in Gila County, to which you can donate.
Business owners continue recovery efforts
Globe business owner David Berrey also talked with ABC15 about how the clean-up is going.
Back when Nick met David on October 30, he was still trying to clear out tons of mud from the four buildings he owns along Globe's historic Broad Street.
After the flooding, outside one of David's buildings, you could see cars tossed around as if they were toys.
"The back was just a car smoothie," explains David, who shared a drone video he took after the recovery with ABC15. "There were cars stacked on top of cars; the power of water really amazed me."
And David isn't the only one. There were dozens of businesses up and down Broad Street that felt the fury of Mother Nature.
"There is just so much mud," David told us a few weeks back.
It's been a painstaking process that has involved tons of sweat equity on his part, outside engineers, and making sure his tenants, like Globe Antique Mall, get back on their feet.
"Three people died, and that's three too many. But there could have been a lot more deaths. I'd like to see what could be done to prevent it from happening again."
Since we met with David, he said he's been able to clear out much of the mud in his buildings, has moved the two cars you saw stacked on top of each other, and has also rebuilt a wall that was damaged in the flooding.
The Small Business Administration has opened up an office in Globe to help businesses in the recovery process. Mayor Gameros says, so far, businesses have received more than $1.2 million in low-interest loans, and some business owners have gotten an initial $5,000 from the United Fund of Globe-Miami.
ABC15 has gotten questions from a few viewers, wondering when the rest of the money will be handed out and how much business owners can expect. We have reached out to the officials who administer the funds, and as soon as we hear back, we will let you know what we find out.
David also has a GoFundMe page dedicated to his businesses. If you'd like to donate to that, click here.
