Flash Flooding Forces Evacuation of 16 Homes in El Paso Enchanted Hills Neighborhood

Emergency crews evacuated 16 homes in northwest El Paso on Saturday evening, October 24, after flooding near Dawnlight Lane followed a reservoir overflow in the Enchanted Hills neighborhood, the City of El Paso said in a news statement on Saturday night. The neighborhood sits north of Transmountain Road, uphill from Interstate 10.

KDBC El Paso reported the same event the same evening, with 16 homes evacuated in northwest El Paso after severe weather prompted an emergency response.

Emergency Operations Center opened

The El Paso Office of Emergency Management activated its Emergency Operations Center because of the rainstorm and flash flooding. The response included a water rescue from a vehicle on South Desert Boulevard on the West Side, officials said. Water rescue teams were staged across the city as a precaution, on standby in case the flooding spread.

The Red Cross and Sun Metro assisted at the evacuated area, and El Paso Water deployed water vacuum trucks to help clear the water. All the residents in the evacuated area have a place to stay, the city stated.

Watch in place across far West Texas and New Mexico

El Paso, Hudspeth and Culberson counties in far West Texas, and much of New Mexico from Dona Ana County to Bernalillo County, were under a severe thunderstorm watch issued by the National Weather Service until 9 PM on Saturday. The weather also cut into public events. The annual Dia de los Muertos festival in Downtown El Paso closed early on Saturday evening because of the weather.

Nearly 320 rescues across the river in Juarez

The same storm system hit harder across the Rio Grande. In Juarez, police took part in nearly 320 rescues and assists related to the rain and flooding, including helping motorists stranded in flooded streets, the city of Juarez said in a news release. Powerful flash floods dragged away several vehicles in the Arroyo de las Viboras area in the Felipe Angeles neighborhood. There were no reported deaths, officials said.

On the El Paso side, the count stayed at property and displacement rather than loss of life in the reports filed Saturday night: 16 homes emptied near Dawnlight Lane, a vehicle water rescue on South Desert Boulevard, and residents placed for the night with help from the Red Cross and Sun Metro while vacuum trucks worked in Enchanted Hills.