Alert archive / Arizona / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2001

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 4, NWS Phoenix, AZ

July 3, 2001Maricopa County, Pinal County, Arizona

NWS Phoenix, AZ issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 3, 2001, 2:51 PM MST for Maricopa County, Pinal County, Arizona. It was in force for 39 min. 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
Jul 3, 2001, 2:51 PM MST (21:51 UTC)
Expired
Jul 3, 2001, 3:30 PM MST
In force
39 min
Issued by
NWS Phoenix, AZ
Area
Whole counties; the outline is the Mesonet’s reconstruction

Counties Maricopa County, AZ, Pinal County, AZ

The radar

The Phoenix radar (KIWA), 3 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, 9.9 hours before the alert went out and 32 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 2001-07-03Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 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 2001-07-03The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -7 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
3502 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
22 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-7 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
68 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 
WUUS55 KPSR 032154
SVRPHX

AZC013-021-032230-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PHOENIX AZ
251 PM MST TUE JUL 3 2001

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PHOENIX HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  EAST CENTRAL MARICOPA COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL ARIZONA
  NORTH CENTRAL PINAL COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL ARIZONA

* UNTIL 330 PM MST

* AT 247 PM MST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 6 MILES NORTHEAST OF QUEEN CREEK...OR ABOUT 9
  MILES SOUTH OF APACHE JUNCTION...MOVING SOUTHWEST AT 5 MPH.

STRONG AND DAMAGING WINDS ARE LIKELY FROM THIS STORM...BUT THERE WILL
BE LITTLE RAIN. TAKE COVER IN A STURDY STRUCTURE UNTIL THE STORM
PASSES.

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

LAT...LON 3343 11159 3360 11178 3307 11195 3304 11136

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm 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 severe thunderstorm warning went out at Jul 3, 10:15 AM MST, 4 hours 36 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 3, 10:15 AM MST, 4 hours 36 minutes before
AZZ020>028-CAZ030>033-032245-

SOUTHWEST ARIZONA/SOUTHEAST CALIFORNIA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PHOENIX AZ
1015 AM MST TUE JUL 3 2001

.SYNOPSIS...
A LARGE HIGH PRESSURE SYSTEM ALOFT...CENTERED NEAR THE FOUR CORNERS
REGION...WILL DRIFT SLOWLY NORTHWARD THIS WEEK. THIS WILL RESULT IN
A CHANGE IN THE WIND PATTERN...WITH SOUTHEASTERLY WINDS BRINGING IN
MORE MOISTURE TO BOTH SOUTHEAST CALIFORNIA AND SOUTHWEST ARIZONA. A
CORRESPONDING INCREASE IN THUNDERSTORM POTENTIAL CAN BE EXPECTED AS
THE AIR BECOMES MOISTURE LADEN. IT WILL...HOWEVER...TEND TO MODERATE
THE DAYTIME TEMPERATURES DOWN TO MORE NORMAL LEVELS BY MID WEEK.

.DISCUSSION...
WATER VAPOR IMAGERY AND PLOT DATA SHOW WESTERN U.S. ANTICYCLONE HAS
A NUMBER OF FEATURES AROUND ITS PERIPHERY. ON ITS SOUTHEAST FLANK IS
A BIG INVERTED TROUGH CENTERED JUST SOUTHEAST OF CHIHUAHUA
MEXICO...WITH A DEFORMATION ZONE IN BETWEEN. THERE ARE ALSO MINOR
PERTURBATIONS EXTENDING FROM THE TEXAS PANHANDLE TO THE FAR NORTHERN
SEA OF CORTEZ. ON THE SOUTHWEST FLANK OF THE HIGH IS ANOTHER
CYCLONIC CIRCULATION WELL WEST OF NORTHERN BAJA. THERE IS ALSO A
WEAKENING SHORT WAVE APPROACHING THE PAC NORTHWEST COAST AND ANOTHER
SHORT WAVE OVER THE NORTHERN HIGH PLAINS. HIGHER 850 AND 700 MB DEW
POINTS APPEAR TO BE HEADED THIS WAY IN CONNECTION WITH WESTWARD
ADVANCING INVERTED TROUGH. LOWER DEW POINT VALUES ARE APPARENT ON
THE EAST SIDE OF THE INVERTED TROUGH.

A MIXED BAG OF 24 HOUR CHANGES ON THIS MORNINGS RAOBS. TUS AND PSR A
BIT COOLER BELOW 700 MB. 1Y7 AND TUS BOTH GAINED ABOUT .2 INCHES
PWATER...1Y7 BELOW 550 MB AND TUS ABOVE 600 MB...WHEREAS NKX LOST
ABOUT .2 INCHES PWATER. MORE DISTINCT EASTERLY FLOW ON THE PSR
SOUNDING. THE SOUNDINGS STILL HAVE MOIST MID LEVELS AND RELATIVELY
DRY LOW LEVELS...PROFILES CONDUCIVE TO DOWNBURSTS. THIS IS
CONSISTENT WITH SPC SLIGHT RISK.

12Z PROGS SHOW A PERTUBATION OVER NEW MEXICO MOVING INTO SOUTHERN
ARIZONA TODAY...AVN A BIT SLOWER AND FURTHER SOUTH THAN ETA. IF THIS
WERE TO PAN OUT...WE SHOULD BE MORE ACTIVE OVER THE LOW DESERTS THIS
EVENING GIVEN MORE FAVORABLE STEERING FLOW AND BETTER MID LEVEL
MOISTURE OVER SOUTHEAST ARIZONA. BY WEDNESDAY MORNING...INVERTED
TROUGH AXIS TO REACH EASTERN SONORA. FLOW BECOMES SOUTHEASTERLY ON
WEDNESDAY. THIS WOULD SUGGEST DEEPER MOISTURE WILL BE MOVING IN
REGION-WIDE. HOWEVER...BOTH ETA AND AVN SHOW LOWER 850 MB DEW POINTS
MOVING INTO SOUTHEAST ARIZONA AND HIGHER VALUES MOVING INTO
SOUTHWEST ARIZONA AND SOUTHEAST CALIFORNIA. BY THURSDAY...THE 850 MB
MOISTURE AXIS SHIFTS EASTWARD INTO CENTRAL ARIZONA. THIS IS
ASSOCIATED WITH AN EASTWARD SHIFT OOF THE RIDGE POSITION. THE SHORT
OF IT ALL IS THAT STORM ACTIVITY WILL BE ON THE UPSWING. THE
CHARACTER OF THE STORMS WILL ALSO BE CHANGING DURING THIS TIME AS WE
CHANGE THE MOISTURE PROFILES.

JAMISON

The office that day

Everything else NWS Phoenix, AZ issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 3, 3:36 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPSRPinal54 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Arizona, 2001Every severe thunderstorm 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.