Tom Kaiser awoke Thursday morning to popping sounds coming from water and debris smashing through his basement window.
"It was like many sonic booms," said the father of two, whose home sits at 11891 S. Pond Ridge Drive in a new subdivision near the border of Draper and Sandy. "The house is just a disaster."A ditch owned by Draper Irrigation Co. gave way about 6:30 a.m., flooding 10 homes in the neighborhood. Kaiser's home and another suffered extensive damage, said Salt Lake County Fire Capt. Frank Dalton.
Kaiser's basement is filled with 5 feet of sand deposited by the floodwaters he described as "river rapids." The waters entered the rear of the home and burst out basement windows on the other side.
As he watched cleanup crews from his porch, Kaiser said he had nearly finished his basement and had a new home theater and computer system in boxes down there.
After the flood, nothing but sand was visible through the home's basement windows. "It's a homeowner's nightmare," Kaiser said.
It is unclear whether the water overflowed the banks of the naturally bound ditch or ran through tiny cracks in the bank neighbors say were dug by gophers.
It is also not clear who is responsible for damages, which had not been estimated early Thursday.
Draper Irrigation Co. general manager Michael Bevins says high runoff may have been a factor and he has never heard about cracks in the bank. However, a minor break to the south of that canal occurred six years ago.
The ditch flows into a $4 million canal that Bevins said Salt Lake County and Draper use for drainage or runoff purposes. The canal, built in the 1920s, begins about 14600 South near I-15 and flows north about three miles into Dry Creek.
Neighbors said city officials told them they weren't responsible for the ditch as it is owned by the Draper Irrigation Co.
Like most of his neighbors, Kaiser has no flood insurance.
"This is something we try to prevent in any way, shape or form," Bevins said. "This is not about squabbling (among the three agencies) - obviously it's a miscommunication."
Confusion about responsibility aside, Kaiser's front yard, street and neighbors' houses across the way resembled a riverbed after the flood, covered with 3 to 4 feet of sand.
The ditch, beginning at about 900 east, rushed to the west, carving an 8-foot-deep trench through the yards of homes. Dalton reports one home may be sliding off its foundation.
Bevins said the company has been monitoring water levels for several days, trying to get enough water in pressure irrigation ponds. He says the ditch that broke Thursday morning usually is dry. "But once it goes, the water is totally destructive," Bevins said.
Dallen Atack, 11897 S. Ibis Way, just east of Kaiser, says he noticed water leaking through the bank about 5:30 Thursday morning as he was preparing to go to work. He notified the city. A city official called back and told his wife, Kimber, the canal belongs to the private company and that the city could do nothing about it.
But in the past, Atack says, the city has responded to smaller leaks and has plugged leaks.
Atack says it's the sixth time he has reported leaks in the past year and a half. "Half my back yard is gone, but my house is all right," Atack said.
Neighbors stayed home from work trying to help crews dig trenches to keep water from flowing into homes. They gathered at the scene, many shaking their heads in disbelief, while watching city's heavy machinery haul away sand and debris.
Keiser's biggest concern before Thursday was putting in his lawn. "Our biggest concern is what we do now," Keiser said.