Southern Arizona dam holding as water recedes

October 03, 2018 12:00 am • Last Updated: October 03, 2018 11:49 pm

The earthen Menagers Dam is in imminent danger of failing, potentially sending floodwaters rushing into the Tohono O'odham village of Ali Chuk, Ariz. on Wednesday, Oct. 3, 2018, southwest of Sells, Ariz. Evacuations had begun Tuesday night after Hurricane Rosa's remnants drenched the western half of Arizona. (Mike Christy/Arizona Daily Star via AP)

PHOENIX — A southern Arizona dam that had been at risk of breaking and flooding a small village held steady Wednesday as the lake behind it receded after being swollen with runoff from the remnants of Tropical Storm Rosa.

The water level at Menagers Dam dropped about 4 feet over the course of the day after rising to just a foot below the top of the earthen dam, said Matt Smith, a spokesman for the Tohono O'odham Nation.

Ali Chuk, a Native American community with 162 people, had been evacuated Tuesday night.

Smith did not immediately have an update on the evacuations after officials inspected the dam and lake by helicopter and determined the water was receding.

During the past three days, moisture from the storm dumped 5 to 7 inches of rain in isolated mountain areas near the dam, the National Weather Service said. Flooding from runoff made roads impassable.

The tribal safety department said 30 people had been evacuated from another village on the reservation because of flooding.

Elsewhere in the state, flash flood watches in Phoenix and other areas were set to expire later Wednesday as the storm left the region and headed for Colorado and Utah.

The weather service said up to 1 inch of rain had fallen in parts of Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix.

A separate flash flood warning was issued through Thursday morning for Yavapai County north of Phoenix due to possible thunderstorms.

The weather service said a record 2.35 inches of rain had fallen at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport as of Tuesday night.

That made it the rainiest October day since records have been kept, topping the 2.32 inches recorded on Oct. 14, 1988.

It also marked the eighth-rainiest day in Phoenix history for any date.

The earthen Menagers Dam is in imminent danger of failing, potentially sending floodwaters rushing into the Tohono O'odham village of Ali Chuk on Wednesday, Oct. 3, 2018, southwest of Sells, Ariz. Evacuations had begun Tuesday night after Hurricane Rosa's remnants drenched the western half of Arizona. (Mike Christy/Arizona Daily Star via AP)

The earthen Menagers Dam is in imminent danger of failing, potentially sending floodwaters rushing into this Tohono O'odham village of Ali Chuk on Oct. 3, 2018, southwest of Sells, Ariz. Evacuations had begun Tuesday night after Hurricane Rosa's remnants drenched the western half of Arizona. (Mike Christy/Arizona Daily Star via AP)

A helicopter flies over floodwaters filling Menagers Lake, where the dam is in imminent danger of failing, sending floodwaters rushing into the Tohono O'odham village of Ali Chuk on Wednesday, Oct. 3, 2018, southwest of Sells, Ariz. Evacuations had begun Tuesday night after Hurricane Rosa's remnants drenched the western half of Arizona. (Mike Christy/Arizona Daily Star via AP)

The earthen Menagers Dam, top left, is in imminent danger of failing, potentially sending floodwaters rushing into the Tohono O'odham village of Ali Chuk, top right, as seen on Wednesday, Oct. 3, 2018, southwest of Sells, Ariz. Evacuations had begun Tuesday night after Hurricane Rosa's remnants drenched the western half of Arizona. (Mike Christy/Arizona Daily Star via AP)

In this Oct. 2, 2018 photo provided by the Tohono O'odham Nation Dept. of Public Safety, is flooding near the Menagers Dam community in Arizona. An earthen dam in Arizona's southern desert could fail because the lake behind it is swollen with runoff from the remnants of Tropical Storm Rosa, threatening a small Native American community that is working to evacuate residents. (Tohono O'odham Nation Dept. of Public Safety via AP)

In this Oct. 2, 2018 photo provided by the Tohono O'odham Nation Dept. of Public Safety, is flooding near the Kohatk Village in Pinal County, Arizona. An earthen dam in Arizona's southern desert could fail because the lake behind it is swollen with runoff from the remnants of Tropical Storm Rosa, threatening a small Native American community that is working to evacuate residents. (Tohono O'odham Nation Dept. of Public Safety via AP)

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