LA sanitation workers had their hands full Monday clearing out storm drains after the weekend downpour, but they say the bulk of their work for the season is done.
"We go out and clean every structure that's related to storm drains between the months of May and October," Robert Potter of the LA Department of Public Works said. "So there's 44,000 catch basins, 50 debris basins, there's channels, so we go through them all and clean them up."
So why does it seem like the same areas, such as a stretch of trendy Melrose Avenue that flooded during Sunday's rain, always flood during major downpours?
The city and county are aware of the problem on Melrose and agree it's a design issue that eventually will have to be fixed by upsizing the system, Potter said.
People who own property on Melrose wonder why, if the system needs upgrading, it isn't happening already.
"You know we pay taxes, we pay everything else, they should help us out too," property owner Ami Sela said. "We don't ask for much."
Until those repairs are made, people can help by keeping trash out of the gutters.
"Any debris -- it could be as simple as a bag, it could be as big as a piece of lumber that just was left out and washed away -- it'll create such a big problem," Potter said.
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