Valley braces for start of Monsoon season

The National Weather Service said the Valley, along with other parts of Arizona, could be in for monsoon storms by the coming weekend, or early into next week.

ADOT officials said Wednesday they are getting ready for what's to come.

"Making sure all the pump stations that help remove water from roadways around the Valley are working, and that the drains are clean," said Doug Nintzel with ADOT.

Nintzel said it takes year-round preparations from crews.

"We're always working to say, OK, what are we doing this year, in terms of being on call and ready to respond as quickly as possible, and do we have to have personnel when we know storms are coming, and station them at certain parts of the Valley so that there response time can be that much faster," said Nintzel.

The National Weather Service said it's hard to pin point exactly what areas of Phoenix could soon see rain and dust, but did say people should have an emergency plan in place.

"If you're planning on driving down I-10 to Tucson on Friday or Saturday afternoon, be aware that's a dust storm area," said Meteorologist Mark O'Malley with the National Weather Service. "Just pull off to the side of the road if you encounter a dust storm and just wait it out."

ADOT also recommend that drivers, when driving on wet roads, should give themselves more space and time around other vehicles, and to also avoid driving into any kind of standing water.