Arizona republican., 1921-08-21
FLOOD WATERS
 PASS WITHOUT
 MATERIAL HARM
Officials Declare Recur- renee Of. High Waters Would Do Great Damage Urge Cave Creek Con- trol Action At Once

trol Action At Once
 All danger from the flood waters of Cave Creek, which. broke through the Arizona. canal Friday night and covered the territory between that waterway and the Grand canal to q depth of about three feet and a width of a quarter of a mile, passed yes- terday when rains ceased in the Bradshaw range. although now. with the Arizona canal cut in five places and weakened in others, a recurrence of the high water will result in ex- tensive damage. according to off cials of the Salt River Valley Water Users association yesterday.
 Following an examination of the canal and the flooded district yes- terday, these officials were of the opinion that had the flood been as great as early reports had indicated, approximating that of Thanksgiving day, 1919, there would have been a death list to publish yesterday. As 1t was. despite every precaution taken by the association and the all most superhuman efforts of the trained crews which were rushed to
 
 flood waters had reached it.. the swollen creek hardly hesitated in it's course after it had topped the south bank of the canal, which went to pieces under the swirling water while almost 70 men tried to protect iS. Five breaks, running from 20 feet to 50 feet in width, were made by the flood, which also backed up the wa ter in the Arizona canal until the e. Al most mile north of the break at Lateral No. 12h.
 The damage to the Arizona canal will amount to about s2500, 1t was es- timated yesterday. Repair work has been started already and this will be pushed rapidly as soon as the ground 1 is hard enough to permit the use of Fresno scrapers and mules. Water Users association heads said yester- day thAt water will. be flowins I through the canal by Tuesday night so that there will have been prac- | tically no interruption of water serv- ice to farmers along that waterway The damage to farm lands and crop: was almost nothing, it is said, whil' that to houses and stored crops wa! so small as to be almost negligible
 The county roads came through th' visitation almost unscathed, the dam age to them amounting to not mor' I than $50, most of which was done tt
 the dirt shoulders along the high ways.
 I Prepared for Flood
 I During Friday afternoon, it wa
 said yesterday in recounting the floot
 incident. officials of the Wate l Users association were notified o Fl heavy rains in the Cave Creek water shed, and at 5: 30 o'clock the wate was cut from the Arizona canal be 1 low the old cross-cut canal, eigh Il miles from Cave Creek. The objec I of this was to lower the water in tn 4 canal to an extent which would per init the canal to take care of larg ] part of the flood waters when the, hit the waterway. it being know that the flood would strike the cana At about Lateral No. 13. The Ever . green wasteway. seven miles west Granite Reef was also opened, a were all the laterals-
 Acting on telephone advices of l heavy storm which were sent fror
 point about 20 miles north of th . function of Cave and Apache Creekl | the officials of the associations esti
 mated that 1t would sake from six { eight hours for the flood to reach tn :, canal. At $40 o'clock farmer tele ! phoned to the superintendent of con struction that flood waters were com
 inc down Cave Greek. The superin ! tendent immediately ordered tn camp foreman and 65 men. who wer ! located about five miles from Cav i. Creek, to go immediately to the Ari 1, zona canal.
 The water reached the canal at o'clock, with the foreman ana m
 crew on the job. The water came so fast that it poured over the ~ ; of the south bank ot the canal 10
 depth of from six to eight inche.
 having struck the canal just HUI : west of Lateral No 12h. Numerou 7 gopher holes immediately developed ,. and in short time five breaks na y heen made in the canal bank-break . large enough to permit the passage 7 all the waters of Cave Creek. Passed Grand Canal
 From the Arizona canal the Wate i. flowed to the Grand canal, Wnle [ | took care of it until the laterals wei , ovsrtaxed and gave way, allowing IT :. water to flow toward Six Point The water also flowed along the M' II Dowell road almost to Central aV' as nue. covering that highway 10 7. depth of a foot or more
 :. Plans for the control of Cave Cree ', through the building of a dam al
 point north of Phoenlx Wnere
 creek issues from the mountains na .a been completed during the year. al ,s a large part of the necessary run ' have been obtained. The cost or | "a dam. which will simply hold back ~ flood waters and allow them to go
 waste gradually, is estimated :.
 about $350,0oo. Of this amount |
 state has already appropriated so' " GOO. while the Water Users ass q. citation has appropriated anotn u' Sho 900. The ely has voted DO = issue of s1oo,o00, and the county n a petition before the state tax col
 mission for permission to pass
 emergency measure giving ano.n D
 s1Oo. 900 to the fund. The other so
 poo is to be given by the oil coi
 panies. railroad companies ana ott
 corporations which are liable to aai age through the floods of Cave Cre' In order that the Cave Creek me
 ace may be given immediate a
 careful consideration and the ste
 to avert it consolidated into r
 nrosress. the chamber of commei
 has called a meeting of it's boaro
 directors, together with the board
 county supervisors, the mayor
 cifv manager. the St@