SAN DIEGO (KGTV) – On-and-off rain came through the San Diego area on Tuesday. During that time and the occasional dry spot, ABC 10News drove to different parts of Southcrest to check out what the storm channels and drains look like with the wet weather.
Southcrest was an area hit hard by the Jan. 2024 storm and the flooding that came with it.
We saw some trash and debris, but not a lot of it, inside some channels, and there was one channel that was seemingly spotless.
Our cameras even got a peek inside the mouth of a drainage pipe that also looked fairly clear.
ABC 10News asked the city what's been done to try to prevent flooding in these impacted areas and other potentially problematic areas.
A city spokesperson sent us the following statement:
“Prior to every storm, Storm Patrol teams – consisting of 300+ staff from the City’s Transportation and Stormwater Departments – clean out storm drains and inlets with a history of debris buildup and sweep streets to reduce trash and pollutants from entering our waterways. That includes about 80 critical storm drains in and around the Chollas Creek watershed. In addition, a temporary levee was installed in Southcrest near the Birch Street/Beta Street intersection, which is the lowest-lying part of the area near the Alpha 1 Channel. The levee made from k-rail (concrete barriers) helps improve the channel capacity and reduces the potential for flooding in the surrounding neighborhood. It was installed Jan. 30, 2024, after the historic storm.”
ABC 10News followed through with the city last September as they worked to clear the channel in Southcrest.
Mayor Todd Gloria's office told us more than $8 million was spent to maintain 18 miles of channels before this rainy season.
We spoke to a man in nearby Shelltown, who told ABC 10News a clogged channel near his home was cleaned out a month or so ago.
"Great! I mean, I think it's ready for the storm tonight. I mean, as you can see how it's clean right now, it's very clean right now,” Jose Argonza said. "What else can you ask for? Other than control of the weather."
Back in Southcrest, ABC 10News spoke with Javier Aguayo, who has called Beta Street home for 45 years.
He got hit hard by the flooding.
This neighbor said he’s seen the city doing work on improving the conditions of the channel since the storm.
However, he’d still like to see more done after what he saw that day.
“They still got to repair the channel because it’s very low, about 3 or 4 feet. And the water runs about 5 feet and then the water runs this way. That’s going to happen — the same thing,” Aguayo said.
