Pelted With Worst Storm In 35 Years

On January 20, 2010, the South West SOAR group headed to Apache Junction to avoid the snow and cold of the Grand Canyon; little knowing of the trouble they were heading into. They knew that there was a forecast of rain and wind, but not on the scale they experienced.
They arrived at Lost Dutchman State Park with a few dark clouds on the horizon. The rain started around 11:35 that night as a light sprinkle, but within minutes, it had turned into a torrential downpour with high winds. Weather experts marked it as the worst rain in 35 years and the highest winds ever recorded in Apache Junction, reaching 76 mph. A tornado was even spotted a few miles from Apache Junction.
Locals, even with the fierceness of the storm, were relieved to see the rain. It was a great help to the dessert, due to the months without rain besides the very short show it had received a few days beforehand, and was welcomed by all except traveling visitors like the south west group, their group name being “Nothin’ But G’z”.
Locals were also filling sand bags and setting up barricades to protect themselves against the floods. The weather even cut off power for 15,000 residents of the valley. Despite all this, Isaac Inglis, one of the Nothin’ But G’z, has this to say about the ordeal, “It was an exhilarating, frightening, and extraordinary experience to be there for such a large event.” The storm may have been great for the locals and nature, but it took a heavy toll on group equipment.
The storm caused severe problems for the Nothin’ But G’z. The setting up and taking down of tents was a difficult process with the high winds and rain Ben Sacks, another member of the group, has this to say, “I have mixed feelings, annoyance in the morning due to wet sleeping bags, excitement in the setting up of tents in the storm which I enjoyed.” The winds caused tents to go flying before they could be set up or even staked down, not that stakes would have helped, the group was so wet and soaked that stakes just popped out within seconds of being placed in.
The weather also made it difficult to eat and do nightly meeting. So, to overcome this problem, the group would eat breakfast at the Laundromat, lunch at the library, and dinner underneath an overhang at the local Rec-Center. The nightly meeting was also done underneath the overhang, as it was a convenient place. Then there was the condition of the gear to deal with.
Often, in the morning, gear would be soaking wet and impossible to use if left that way. So, every morning the group would take down tents, pack up sleeping gear, and head over to the local Laundromat. There they would dry sleeping bags, bivi sacks, and tents so they could be used again that night. Laith Saffo had this to say about the events, “I thought it was funny because we had to catch run away tents and go to the Laundromat in the mornings to dry sleeping bags, it was fun.” Even in those terrible conditions, the group stays positive. This group is one tough cookie.
So from these events we can see that the Nothin’ But G’z are an amazing SOAR group to be able to be stuck in such terrible conditions and pull through, stronger than ever. This group is very lucky, because they had the chance to experience such a rare event and look at the harshness of it, laugh, and charge on right on through. Truly, this group has the potential to achieve great things this semester.

- Written Jan 25th 2010 by Isaac John Inglis