Ruthless Rains

Residents of the Tijuana River Valley region experienced localized flooding, mudslides in outlying colonias, and the usual accumulation of trash that flows down spontaneous streams and clogs the storm drains.

A 50-foot tall, 60-something-year-old tree snapped off at the roots Tuesday and fell into the venerable Peanuts & Beer building downtown, causing alarm and consternation amongst the arriving hoochie-coochie dancers and the diners at the outdoor Foreign Club restaurant a few feet away.

Around town, vehicular traffic became bogged down in flooded calles and byways, some flooded to depths of two or more feet. Revolución Avenue was devoid of nearly all business, and harried shopkeepers, those who remained open, used squeegees to push the encroaching rainwater out of their open-front tiendas.

A few faint figures, lost in the murky gray deluge, scurried wraith-like between building overhangs, seeking a temporary respite from the wind-blown downpours that assaulted the city. Gutters gurgled and belched forth their foul contents while the mighty Tijuana River, usually little more than a drybed culvert containing a stagnate stream, roared ominously to the sea.