Phoenix-area storms and flooding cause commuter headaches, outages, delays at Sky Harbor

Overnight storms in the Valley left flooded roads, power outages in the area and affected operations at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport early Thursday.

North Phoenix had heavy rainfall with more than 1.5 inches received in some areas as of 6:45 a.m., according to the Flood Control District of Maricopa County. Near the Phoenix Mountains Preserve, up to 1.81 inches of rain was recorded.

There were reports of floods around 5 a.m. on Interstate 17 southbound near Cactus Road and around 6 a.m. at State Route 41 southbound near McDowell Road, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation.  

Flooding was also reported in both directions of I-17 at Indian School Road around 6 a.m. There was traffic in the area and cars could be seen traveling on the flooded road. The flooding cleared a short time later.

"We want to remind drivers to keep your distance and don't tailgate in rain and don't drive into flooded roads, a car can be swept away in just 12 inches of water," ADOT said in a statement.

There were no restrictions on highways around 8:30 a.m. due to weather conditions, according to ADOT. 

A flash flood warning was extended until noon Saturday for Globe. A flood advisory is also in effect until 12:45 for Maricopa and La Paz counties, according to the National Weather Service in Phoenix.

According to the weather service, residents can expect minor flooding and poor drainage areas. Drivers are advised to turn around if they encounter flooded roads. 

At Sky Harbor Airport, the weather caused some delays and cancellations on Thursday morning, said Eric Everts, spokesperson for the airport. He said Southwest Airlines had some connectivity issues due to the storm.

Passengers can check delays and cancellations on the airport's flight status page at https://www.skyharbor.com/Results/flight-status. According to the website, 26 flights were canceled and 83 were delayed as of Thursday evening, for flights scheduled from midnight until 1 a.m. Friday.

"We encourage travelers to check their flight status and make arrangements with their airline regarding impacts to their specific operation," Everts said.

Dan Landson, a spokesperson for Southwest Airlines, said in an emailed statement that there were issues with Southwest's systems, but their teams were able to restore connectivity with local systems that were affected by the storms and they began resuming their operations at Phoenix Sky Harbor as of 8 a.m.

"We appreciate our customers’ patience as we work to get them to their destinations safely and as quickly as possible. Customers with travel plans that include Phoenix are encouraged to visit Southwest.com or the Southwest app to view their flight status," Landson said in the statement.

The overnight storms also left more than 580 customers with power outages in central Arizona. 

According to the Arizona Public Service outage map, there were 22 customers affected in Paradise Valley, 83 in Sun City, 173 in El Mirage, 54 in Buckeye, 204 in Tonopah and 29 in Gila bend due to storm-related conditions as of 9 a.m. on Thursday.

In Phoenix there were about 16 customers affected due to the storms and in Glendale about 10 as of 9 a.m. on Thursday, according to the Salt River Project outage map.  

Republic reporter Laura Daniella Sepulveda contributed to this article. 

Reach breaking news reporter Angela Cordoba Perez at Angela.CordobaPerez@Gannett.com or on Twitter @AngelaCordobaP.

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