Weekend monsoon wreaks havoc near Cave Creek, Scottsdale homes

PHOENIX - Power poles were snapped in Sunday night's storm and trees were knocked down all over Cave Creek.

APS says it could be days before repairs are made, but stressed there is no power outage.

The storm ripped through parts of the Valley before the downpour and the wall of dust settled over downtown. Then came lightning, wind and rain.

Twenty-seven poles were snapped in 65+ mph winds, APS said.

The monsoon struck again in the Valley, leaving behind a whole lot of damage. FOX 10's Steve Nielsen reports.

"The storm was wicked," said Kerry Cason of Scottsdale.

In Cave Creek, the crackle of rainfall became the roar of a chain saw as the sun rose.

"We’re like, ‘Damn it’s too much, and it’s only us two right now,'" Joseph Castro with Southwest Ground Control said.

He and Erik Valdez spent Monday morning dicing up debris in a shopping center off Cave Creek Road and Tatum Boulevard.

When he heard the roar Sunday night, he knew it meant work Monday morning.

"As soon as I saw the storm, I was like, ‘there’s going to be a lot of trees tomorrow,’" Valdez said.

To the south, at Scottsdale Road and Frank Lloyd Wright Boulevard, a carport was badly damaged by a fallen tree.

"It just was alarming to see all the trees down, and I’m concerned about the vehicles," Cason said.

Miles away, the damage continued and neighbors spent the day cutting up their fallen trees.

Off Tatum Boulevard and Deer Valley Drive, a tree cracked open a concrete block wall.

Far north in Payson, the rain turned to hail.

Dave Stomatuk said he didn’t see hail at his home in Cave Creek.

"Obviously rattling the house and didn’t know what the damage was until just now actually," he said.

He considers himself lucky to have dodged any downed trees.

"The backyard is a little messy but nothing is down," he said.