Prescott eNews

I received an email from Steve Fiegen today, providing an update on the situation in Black Canyon City - specifically The River's Edge RV Park.

I was so grateful, because I had wanted to cover the situation down there ever since hearing of it from Yavapai County Supervisor Tom Thurman, but with our limited staff, we just couldn't manage it. And since our news coverage is focused mostly on the quad-city area, it was really outside our scope. However, in cases of strong interest or disaster, we've been known to stretch our boundaries a bit as a service to the community.

Fiegen will provide most of the reports from here on out, but there were some observations that I thought I would share. Read Fiegen's first report: Report From Black Canyon City: Where's FEMA?

When first arriving, one might be forgiven for thinking that everything is ok. The birds are twitting merrily back and forth between trees and utility wires; there are beautiful fruit trees and flowers in bloom. The residents have done an enormous amount of work to get things back to normal again and while there's a long way to go, at first glance, it looks pretty good. (Kudos to those who didn't sit around feeling sorry for themselves, and have made such heroic efforts at clean up.)

I spoke with Steve Phillips, the owner of the River's Edge. He patiently showed me the water lines - he must have repeated this story so many times over the last two weeks - and pointed me in the right direction for photos. He was emphatic about one thing, however, and that was the fact that the River's Edge has not been condemned, and they will rebuild. As soon as certain repairs are made and his permits are approved, he plans to reopen the park.

Will he do anything different this time, with the wisdom that hindsight brings? Phillips nodded, "They'll have to be able to pull out anything they can pull in." He explained that some of the homes, over time, had become kind of entrenched, adding sheds and decks and other permanent comforts. So, when the storm hit, they weren't able to pull their RV out and they lost everything.

Phillips himself had a stationary mobile home and office. He lost three computers and several years worth of business information. But, he'll stay, he'll just build in a smarter location.

I spoke with several in the park, and I couldn't detect even a tinge of self-pity. Some frustration, yes, wondering when the emergency assistance would happen, but no pity.

One lady's RV was missing an entire end panel, and you could see right through to the box of Cheerios on the kitchen counter. When I expressed my sympathy at the loss of her home and possessions, she thanked me, and said, "But, I'm really worried about the animals. Especially the cats - so many are left behind." She nodded and said she was going to help take care of them.

Someone else had sprinkled bird seed on the ground.

The sand washed up by the river was soft and could be seen everywhere. Looking at where the water had left lines, gave me a sick feeling in my stomach. Not since visiting New Orleans about 18 months after Katrina had I seen such devastation.

I had read some snide comments on other websites, basically implying that people got what they deserve, having parked so close to the "river's edge". But, really, they didn't choose foolishly. The park location was on a bank, high above the river bed, which was normally dry anyway. The photos below don't show this well at all, unfortunately. The truth of it is that there is a time when all the advance planning and foresight can't prevent natural disasters of this magnitude.

In this satellite image of the park, taken on a day, when obviously, the riverbed was dry, I try to 
show how much the water spread. The buildings you see under the writing and the long line
are in the RV park. The kind of squarish-area above the line is a nearby school. The blue line
was added by me to simply show where the course of the river typically runs. Obviously, it's
not really water. This is only at the level of a napkin-drawn approximation. 

There is one bit of good news to be thankful for, and that is nobody was seriously injured or killed in the disaster. Joe Mueller kind of grinned when he reported, "The only injury was to a fireman, who got scratched by a cat."

My 11-year-old daughter, who came to take photos with me, reacted with immediate sympathy. She told me, "You know, my class was going to raise money to donate to shelters to care for dogs and cats. But, I'm going to ask my teacher if we can use the money for these folks instead, I think they need it more."

And, if that's your reaction, well, good. These folks are our neighbors, they live in our county. They've lost everything through no fault of their own. They're not feeling sorry for themselves, but they do appreciate any assistance we can offer. If you'd like to mail something in, here's the info for that:

Black Canyon City Relief Fund
Po Box 86-J
Black Canyon City, Az 85324
(623)374-5569
Bank of the West Account

Photo Gallery

As you look at the photos below, please understand that any reference to measurements is my best guesstimate. I'm just trying to make the situation as understandable from a human perspective as possible.

Click on a thumbnail to see a larger photo. Some of the photos are repeated with descriptions and arrows pointing to water lines.