| PHOENIX
(Reuters) - Up to 500 people were evacuated from their homes
in western Arizona on Friday as floodwaters threatened to
storm through a small community for the second time in a week,
authorities said.
Residents
in low-lying areas of Wenden, Ariz., about 90 miles west
of Phoenix, left their homes again at daybreak amid a steady
rain that threatened to fill a local river bed to the brink
and beyond.
``The
evacuation is really a precaution,'' said Larry Layton,
La Paz county administrator. ``There are a lot of people
who are real nervous and no one is taking any chances right
now. We feel that's the safe thing to do.''
Residents
were sent to a shelter set up by the American Red Cross
at a high school gymnasium in Salome, just outside of Wenden.
Authorities
said National Guard troops also were busy trying to build
dikes in an attempt to block flood-waters from cascading
through the town and further damaging an already devastated
area.
``We're
hoping that if the water does overflow the banks, that the
dikes will take some energy out of the flow,'' said Cliff
Pearlberg, an Arizona Land Department spokesman.
Weather
forecasters said the tiny town of about 1,200 people had
absorbed about an inch of rain on Friday morning and that
amount could double by the end of the day, when the rain
is expected to stop. A flash food advisory was in effect.
Residents
have been battered since Sunday, when the rain-swollen Centennial
Wash overflowed its banks and slammed into the town. In
its wake were damaged homes, businesses, cars, trucks, bridges
and roads.
Many
evacuees had just returned before having to leave again,
authorities said.
Damages
have been estimated at nearly $8 million. About 50 structures
have been destroyed and another 150 severely damaged so
far.
Arizona
Gov. Jane Hull declared a state of emergency on Monday for
La Paz County and parts of Maricopa County, freeing up state
emergency funds. She has also requested federal aid for
the stricken area.
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