Henderson starts extensive cleanup

Karen Zekan

Tuesday, Aug. 12, 1997 | 10:19 a.m.

Henderson work crews are facing extensive cleanup and repair projects in the wake of a weekend thunderstorm locals are calling the worst in more than a decade.

Damaged sidewalks, flood control channels and sewer lines were among the after effects public works and building inspectors noted Monday while surveying the damage from three inches of intense rain that pelted the valley's southeast city for about two hours Sunday.

"It's mostly nuisance cleanup," said Public Works Director Mark Calhoun. "We found a lot of debris and dirt in the streets and on the sides of the roads near lawns."

City officials were expecting by this afternoon to have completed an assessment of flood-related damage to support a plea to Gov. Bob Miller for disaster assistance.

Officials had yet to arrive at a dollar estimate for the damage by Monday night.

"We have been talking with Boulder City and Clark County to see if we can go in together" on a joint appeal for funding, said Vicki Taylor, Henderson spokeswoman.

Trouble spots needing repair include sidewalks in a residential area near U.S. 95 and Greenway Road, pavement eroded around manholes, and a flood control channel on Lake Mead Drive adjacent to Pueblo Boulevard, Calhoun said.

He added that the city sustained little utility damage and minor breaks in two sewer lines that were repaired Sunday.

The American Red Cross was surveying damage incurred by private property owners and will be factoring the figures into Henderson's overall damage total, Taylor said.

The South Forks Subdivision on Eastern Avenue was among the construction sites hardest hit by the flood. Calhoun said rainwater soaked several houses, and a block retaining wall around a pool under construction was broken.

"I've been here since 1983, and we've had a couple of intense storms that normally last about a half hour or 45 minutes, but this one was much more intense," Calhoun said.

"It was actually worse than the 100-year (flood) which had about two and a half inches of rain fall in six hours. We had over three inches fall in about one to two hours."