Flooding causes car to get stuck, many roads close in Pima County

TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — It was a situation Camille Grandinetti never thought she would get herself into. On Monday she found herself in a car that was stuck in a flooded roadway, scraping her knee while getting swept away slightly after she got out of it.

The strong current carried her under a bridge, forcing her to grab onto rocks to avoid going underwater.

Grandinetti explained that her daughter-in-law was driving while she was on the phone, and they didn't realize they had driven into the water until it was too late. As water began entering the car, Grandinetti had to take action.

"You're going to get yourself in trouble. You're going to get yourself hurt and you can get yourself killed," Grandinetti said.

"I pushed my car out, out of that water," Grandinetti said.

For Grandientti, it was a lesson she thought she would never have to learn.

"Stay away from water, from the water like that because it can kill you," Grandinetti said.

In Vail, flooding affected Old Spanish Trail near Camino del Garnon, creating hazardous driving conditions for people who live in Vail like Nick Carter.

"It does get pretty bad out here," Carter said.

Ongoing developments and construction projects, Carter said, are affecting how rainwater flows through the community. He also said washes can overflow into the streets.

"It really affects the water displacement and everything especially with the construction and all that kind of going on," he said. "If you do not have a four wheel drive, I would not say do it," Carter said.

Carter works in network infrastructure and is often called out during severe weather events when flooding causes damage to utilities.

"When they have an outage or some sort of issue where somebody's trying to go through a flooded wash and hit a telephone pole and knock down the power or internet," Carter said about the situations that cause him to respond.

His advice for drivers encountering flooded roads is simple but potentially life-saving.

"If there are signs saying do not pass, don't go," Carter said.