Phoenix Fire Department responds to record number of calls during storm

  • Source: Arizona Republic, AZCentral.com & KPNX-TV NBC 12 Phoenix
  • Published: 09/01/2015 08:58 AM

Phoenix firefighters responded to a record 400 calls for help during Monday night's harsh monsoon storm. All of those calls came in during a two-hour period -- the largest volume ever for the Phoenix Fire Department, which usually receives that many calls in 24 hours. The calls ranged from house fires -- at least one of which was caused by lightning --to people stranded in cars on flooded roads, car accidents, power outages and more. The fire department said they had about 70 staff members assessing traffic outages, road closures and damage overnight, beginning with the downtown area and spreading out. Downed trees still littered the city early Tuesday morning. Phoenix Parks and Recreation reported severe damage at Encanto Park and flooding and damage at other parks, as well. Public works crews worked overnight to pick up trees, branches and brush. Phoenix Fire said city crews started picking up trees on public roads and sidewalks at 6 a.m. If a tree is down on a public street or sidewalk, residents can call 602-262-7251. If a tree is down on private property, residents are asked to cut the tree up and move the pieces to their usual bulk trash pick up location via curb or alley and the city will pick it up. The storm cut power to about 50,000 SRP and APS customers Monday evening. That number has gone down since, but as of 6:30 a.m. there were more than 10,00 customers without power. Although there were widespread damage reports and power outages, the Phoenix Fire Department said it did not take any reports of major injuries or fatalities. The Phoenix Police Department said it took even more calls during the storm. According to a tweet Tuesday morning, police took over 500 calls, including 243 hazards, 141 alarms, 65 accidents and 60 calls for information.



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