Receding floodwaters reveal massive mess in Tijuana River Valley



by: Salvador Rivera
Posted: Jan 23, 2024 / 07:01 PM CST
Updated: Jan 23, 2024 / 07:01 PM CST




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SAN DIEGO (Border Report) — Elizabeth Bagnas has lived next to the Tijuana River Valley for more than 20 years, but what she saw Monday morning left her “stunned” as tons of trash and debris washed in from south of the border.

“Never this kind of trash and debris making it look like a landfill in here,” said Bagnas.

“When you think the pollution is literally at your doorstep, it’s on our doorstep, it’s just a sea of trash, but to have it come like this it really smacks you in the face, just the absolute madness of how much trash there is and that it’s sitting right here.”

The trash was sitting on the grounds of the West Coast Sod farm, which was entirely underwater on Monday.

A day later, as the water started to recede, some of the green grass was visible, but so was a thick layer of trash and plastics, which will likely require an extensive cleanup effort to clear out.

Six migrants rescued from swollen Tijuana River during storm

Border Report’s efforts to reach management at the sod farm to discuss the damage and plans to clean up the facility, were unsuccessful.






Water, trash and debris flowed into the Tijuana River Valley from Mexico during a massive storm on Monday, Jan. 22, 2024. (Salvador Rivera/Border Report)But Bagnas had her own ideas.

“First they have to pump the water out to be able to make it workable, and then clear it of all the debris, and then you wonder what are the health concerns for the people that are going to be cleaning up.”






Elizabeth Bagnas lives next to the flooded Tijuana River Valley in San Ysidro, Calif. (Salvador Rivera/Border Report)


Bagnas said she is most concerned about the sewage in the water, not only the smell but the health threat it poses to people like her and her neighbors.

“This community is already suffering from the smell, now it’s worrisome for those with respiratory illnesses in particular.”

A few miles downstream, people were trying to clean up and assess damage caused by the rain and flooding.

Dozens of farms, ranches and horse boarding facilities were still covered by water and mud.

People could be seen shoveling the mud and checking up on their animals along Hollister Street.

An unidentified driver who pulled up to see the flooding said overall he and his neighbors in the Valley fared well and “things could’ve been much worse.”

This could not be said for the city of Tijuana just south of the border.


The El Sol Newspaper said the storm left “chaos behind in Tijuana.”

Hundreds of children were trapped in one school as it flooded, requiring firefighters, police officers and others to get them out.

Social media posts showed first responders carrying the students out of the school. Some of the children could be heard crying.





An agent with Tijuana’s Civil Defense carries a student out of a school that had flooded. (Courtesy: Tijuana Civil Defense)


Numerous power outages were reported throughout the region, from Tijuana south to Ensenada 65 miles to the south along the coast.


Many of the major roadways in the city flooded and were deemed unpassable.
On one major roadway, the rain created a sinkhole that was more than 100 feet long and about 20 feet deep.

There were also dozens of landslides reported throughout the city.

As dry creeks were turned into raging rivers, El Sol reported several people had to be rescued from streams and fast-moving water.







Torrent of water cascading down a hillside in Tijuana. (Jose Luis Camarillo/El Sol de Tijuana)

Residents blamed the city for not clearing trash out of storm drains before the rains hit. They say this caused extensive flooding in many neighborhoods.

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The city of Tijuana set up shelters for those who had to leave their homes or seniors who could not fend for themselves.

Schools were ordered closed on Tuesday and Wednesday.



https://www.borderreport.com/regions...-river-valley/