On the anniversary of the Jan. 22, 2024 floods that devastated their neighborhoods, survivors gathered in Shelltown to pray.
They asked God to help them heal and to win against the city of San Diego in court.
“So they’ll take us seriously because they’ve never taken us seriously before, or else this area wouldn't look the way it does, or it wouldn't be flooded the way it floods,” said Greg Montoya, a flood survivor.
Their lawsuit claims the city failed to maintain storm channels in their neighborhoods, which are predominantly Latino and low-income.
They also said not enough has changed since the floods.
“The canal or creek is not clean,” said Beba Zárate, another flood survivor. “So whenever the rain is coming, there is some kind of issues because the trash is out there.”
She wants the city to maintain the storm channels.
The city didn’t immediately respond to questions from KPBS.
Zárate said the survivors still carry trauma. On the anniversary, it feels even more present.
“I feel, like, here and not here, you know?” she explained. “When you’re trying to be yourself, but that is something that takes you back to the day, what happened two years ago.”
After a blessing, they released balloons into the sky to show that they, too, will rise from the wreckage.
