The Flood of 1983
History
In October of 1983, Arizona got hit with constant rain for a week straight from the Pacific tropical storm called Octave off the coast of Mexico. Parts of Arizona flooded. Flood waters reached eight feet in Tucson. Across Arizona damage reached $500 million, 1,300 houses were destroyed or damaged, 10,000 people were left homeless, 13 people died, and hundreds were injured. There was also a relief helicopter that crashed while trying to rescue a woman and her baby.
Hitting Home
My mom was 17 during the flood of 1983. She lived in a trailer park, that is now Continental Ranch, with her parents, brother, and sister. On October 1st, she was home alone when the flood hit. My mom was stuck on the roof of her home for seven hours, helplessly awaiting for help. She was rescued by boat and then escorted back to her family by firetruck. Her family lost their house and all their belongings inside. They were one of the thousands left homeless. Many of the families stayed at Marana High School in the time being and schools were closed for a week. Everything was contaminated from the dirty water so even after a week of waiting they were not allowed to collect any items that had been touched by the water.