Alert archive / Arizona / Flash Flood Warnings in 2001

Flash Flood Warning 11, NWS Phoenix, AZ

August 19, 2001Gila County, Arizona

NWS Phoenix, AZ issued this flash flood warning at Aug 19, 2001, 2:49 PM MST for Gila County, Arizona. It was in force for . No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline the Iowa Environmental Mesonet reconstructed for it; the warning itself named whole counties.

The facts

Issued
Aug 19, 2001, 2:49 PM MST (21:49 UTC)
Expired
Aug 19, 2001, 2:45 PM MST
In force
Issued by
NWS Phoenix, AZ
Area
Whole counties; the outline is the Mesonet’s reconstruction

County Gila County, AZ

The radar

The Phoenix radar (KIWA), 90 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:50 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.

Open the radar archive at this moment

The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.

The nearest sounding before it

Phoenix, AZ (KPSR), launched 12:00Z, 9.8 hours before the alert went out and 118 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Phoenix, AZ at 12:00Z on 2001-08-19Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 748 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Phoenix, AZ at 12:00Z on 2001-08-19The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 0 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
748 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-283 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
2037 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
0 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
0 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
0 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
WGUS55 KPSR 192151
FFWPHX
AZC007-192245-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PHOENIX AZ
249 PM MST SUN AUG 19 2001

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PHOENIX HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  SOUTH CENTRAL GILA COUNTY IN EAST CENTRAL ARIZONA

* UNTIL 345 PM MST

* AT 245 PM MST...WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED STRONG
  THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCING VERY HEAVY RAIN 5 MILES SOUTHEAST OF 
  GLOBE. THE AREA OF HEAVY RAIN WAS NEARLY STATIONARY.

EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM THIS STORM WILL CAUSE FLASH FLOODING OF CREEKS 
AND STREAMS AND WASHES...ROADS AND ROADSIDE CULVERTS. THE HEAVY 
RAINS COULD ALSO TRIGGER ROCK AND MUDSLIDES IN STEEP TERRAIN.

A FLASH FLOOD WARNING MEANS THAT FLOODING IS IMMINENT OR OCCURRING.
IF YOU ARE IN THE WARNING AREA MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND IMMEDIATELY.
RESIDENTS LIVING ALONG STREAMS AND CREEKS SHOULD TAKE IMMEDIATE
PRECAUTIONS TO PROTECT LIFE AND PROPERTY. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CROSS
SWIFTLY FLOWING WATERS OR WATERS OF UNKNOWN DEPTH BY FOOT OR BY
AUTOMOBILE. IF YOUR VEHICLE STALLS...ABANDON IT IMMEDIATELY AND SEEK
HIGHER GROUND.

TO REPORT SEVERE WEATHER HAVE THE NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY
RELAY YOUR REPORT TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST OFFICE IN
PHOENIX.

LAT...LON 3336 11087 3318 11078 3328 11044 3352 11057

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this flash flood warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Phoenix, AZ wrote its last area forecast discussion before this flash flood warning went out at Aug 19, 2:45 PM MST, 4 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 19, 2:45 PM MST, 4 minutes before
AZZ020>028-CAZ030>033-200545-

SOUTHWEST ARIZONA/SOUTHEAST CALIFORNIA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PHOENIX AZ
245 PM MST SUN AUG 19 2001

.SYNOPSIS...
SOUTHWEST AND SOUTH-CENTRAL ARIZONA...AS WELL AS FAR SOUTHEAST
CALIFORNIA WILL UNDERGO A TRANSITION FROM THE CURRENT MOIST
SOUTHEAST FLOW OF AIR TO A MUCH DRIER SOUTHWEST FLOW ALOFT BY
MIDWEEK. THIS WILL RESULT IN AN END TO THUNDERSTORMS FOR A FEW
DAYS...ALONG WITH NOTICEABLY LOWER RELATIVE HUMIDITIES AND COOLER
NIGHTTIMES. HOWEVER...BEFORE THIS CHANGE IN AIRMASS OCCURS...THERE
WILL CONTINUE TO BE A CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS MOST
LOCATIONS TONIGHT INTO MONDAY NIGHT...AND THEN ANOTHER CHANCE
TUESDAY IN SOUTH-CENTRAL ARIZONA. SOME OF THE STORMS COULD BE
STRONG...WITH BLOWING DUST AND LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN.

.DISCUSSION...
APPEARS INGREDIENTS MENTIONED IN MORNING DISCUSSION ARE COMING
TOGETHER FOR THE MOST PART. STRONG CONVECTION HAS FORMED IN
AFTERNOON HEATING ALONG THE RIM AND AREAS E OF PHX...WITH LITTLE
MOTION INDICATED. THEREFORE...AM MORE CONCERNED WITH HEAVY RAIN
THREAT THAN SEVERE AT THE MOMENT. HOWEVER...THERE IS DECENT SHEAR ON
THE KIWA VWP...SO THIS...ALONG WITH LARGE SUBCLOUD DP DEPRESSIONS
COULD EVENTUALLY SPELL TROUBLE WITH MICROBURST THREAT ON THE LOWER
DESERTS THIS EVENING. MEANWHILE...DYNAMICS APPEAR TO STILL BE IN
PLACE FOR CONTINUED STORM DEVELOPMENT JUST ABOUT ANYWHERE IN CWFA
TONIGHT...EVEN SE CA WHERE STRONG VORT MAX IS FORECAST TO MOVE THRU
TONIGHT. AS INDICATED IN MORNING DISCUSSION...WILL GO ABOVE BOTH
AVN/NGM MOS POPS TONIGHT. DEBRIS CLOUDS SHOULD ABOUND TOMORROW...BUT
THERE STILL SHOULD BE SOME DYNAMICS WITH REMNANTS OF NWD MOVING
SHEAR ZONE STILL IN AREA AND ANOTHER VORT TROF NUDGING IN FROM THE
W. SO...WILL KEEP SLIGHT CHANCE POPS GOING MONDAY AND MON NIGHT. BY
TUESDAY...ALL MODELS CONTINUE STRONG DRY ADVECTION TRENDS...WITH
POSSIBLY ENOUGH LOW LEVEL MOISTURE LEFT ERN LA PAZ/YUMA COUNTIES EWD
TO WARRANT A CONTINUED SLIGHT CHANCE OF STORMS ON TUE. IF STORMS DO
FORM...THIS TRANSITION EVENT COULD TURN NASTY WITH SOME BECOMING
SEVERE...STAY TUNED. DURING THE EXTENDED PERIOD...ALL MODELS AGREE
THAT WE WILL HAVE A DRY WLY FLOW IN PLACE BY WED...CONTINUING THRU
SUNDAY. SO...WILL CALL FOR SOME CLOUDS ERN PORTIONS ON WED...THEN
MOSTLY CLEAR. ALSO...SURFACE RHS SHOULD BE NOTICEABLY LOWER BY
MIDWEEK. LOWER HUMIDITIES WILL ALSO TRANSLATE INTO COOLER NIGHTS.
ESTLE

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Aug 19, 1:30 PM MST, 1 hour 19 minutes before
AZZ020>028-CAZ030>033-200700-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PHOENIX AZ
130 PM MST SUN AUG 19 2001

...SCATTERED STRONG THUNDERSTORMS POSSIBLE OVER SOUTH-CENTRAL AND
SOUTHWEST ARIZONA...AS WELL AS FAR SOUTHEAST CALIFORNIA TONIGHT...

COUNTIES IN THE RISK AREA INCLUDE:
     IN ARIZONA...MARICOPA...NORTHWEST PINAL...SOUTHERN GILA...
                  LA PAZ...AND YUMA.

     IN CALIFORNIA...IMPERIAL AND EASTERN RIVERSIDE.

THE PRIMARY HAZARDOUS WEATHER RISKS INCLUDE:
     STRONG MICROBURST WINDS...POSSIBLY PRODUCING DENSE BLOWING DUST
     OR SAND IN THE LOWER DESERTS.

OTHER THREATS INCLUDE: DANGEROUS CLOUD-TO-GROUND LIGHTNING AND
     LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN.

SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NECESSARY TONIGHT.

ESTLE

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Arizona, 2001Every flash flood warning in 2001

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.