Alert archive / Arizona / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2001

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 29, NWS Tucson, AZ

August 5, 2001Cochise County, Arizona

NWS Tucson, AZ issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Aug 5, 2001, 4:26 PM MST for Cochise County, Arizona. It was in force for 34 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
Aug 5, 2001, 4:26 PM MST (23:26 UTC)
Expired
Aug 5, 2001, 5:00 PM MST
In force
34 min
Issued by
NWS Tucson, AZ
Area
Whole counties; the outline is the Mesonet’s reconstruction

County Cochise County, AZ

The radar

The Tucson radar (KEMX), 102 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:29 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

Tuscon, AZ (KTUS), launched 12:00Z, 11.4 hours before the alert went out and 140 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, Tuscon, AZ at 12:00Z on 2001-08-05Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 196 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Tuscon, AZ at 12:00Z on 2001-08-05The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -27 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
196 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-330 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1861 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
9 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-27 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
-28 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 KTWC 052328
SVRTUS

AZC003-060000-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ
426 PM MST SUN AUG 5 2001

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TUCSON HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  SOUTH CENTRAL COCHISE COUNTY IN ARIZONA
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITY OF DOUGLAS

* UNTIL 500 PM MST

* AT 420 PM MST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A 
  PAIR OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS 10 MILES NORTH OF DOUGLAS...AND JUST  
  SOUTH OF DOUGLAS...MOVING NORTHWEST AT 15 MPH. 

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
  DOUGLAS THROUGH 440 PM MST

WIND GUSTS TO 65 MPH...LARGE HAIL...AND VERY HEAVY RAIN ARE LIKELY 
WITH THESE STORMS. 

LAT...LON 3132 10958 3152 10942 3174 10978 3153 10994

PYTLAK

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 Tucson, AZ wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Aug 5, 2:08 PM MST, 2 hours 18 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 5, 2:08 PM MST, 2 hours 18 minutes before
SOUTHEAST ARIZONA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ
208 PM MST SUN AUG 5 2001

.SYNOPSIS...ALTHOUGH THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY WILL BE SOMEWHAT LIMITED
THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT...HIGH PRESSURE ALOFT WILL REMAIN OVER THE
GREAT BASIN THIS WEEK. THIS WILL BRING AN UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE
WEST FROM THE MISSISSIPPI VALLEY INTO ARIZONA BY TUESDAY NIGHT. THIS
DISTURBANCE WILL LIKELY CAUSE AN INCREASE IN RAINFALL BY MIDWEEK.

.DISCUSSION...WE'RE DEFINITELY FEELING THE EFFECTS OF YESTERDAY'S
BIG CONVECTION IN SE AZ. TEMPS ARE RUNNING 3 TO 7 DEGREES BELOW
YESTERDAY, WITH TSTMS JUST GETTING STARTED OVER THE MOUNTAINS. WE DO
HAVE A CU FIELD OVER W PIMA COUNTY ON THE N EDGE OF THE MESOSCALE
VORTEX CENTER HEADING WNW TOWARD THE NORTHERN GULF OF CA. OTHER
STORMS ON THE RIM ARE TRYING TO THROW A SMALL OUTFLOW BOUNDARY OUT
TOWARD N GRAHAM COUNTY. THOUGHTS FROM THIS MORNING ARE PRETTY MUCH
UNCHANGED: WE WILL SEE A FEW STORMS THIS EVENING, WITH PERHAPS
SLIGHTLY BETTER COVERAGE NEAR THE RIM AND W PIMA COUNTY, BUT WE'RE
GOING TO BE DOWN OVERALL. I MAY TWEAK A POP HERE AND THERE BASED ON
RADAR TRENDS, BUT CURRENT FORECAST WORDING LOOKS GOOD. MON/MON NIGHT
WILL BE WARMER, BUT SO WILL OUR 400-300MB TEMPS DUE TO SHORT WAVE
RIDGING. E FLOW WILL TRY TO FEED DRIER AIR IN FROM NM WHICH COULD
CONCEIVABLY SET UP SOME KIND OF MOISTURE BOUNDARY AND PUSH A STORM
OR TWO INTO THE VALLEYS. WE COULD EVEN END UP WITH A MICROBURST OR
TWO IF THE 700-500 MB LAYER DRIES OUT AS MUCH AS THE AVN SUGGESTS.
HOWEVER, WITHOUT A CONCRETE TRIGGER AND WITH WEAK CONVERGENT FLOW
ALOFT, COVERAGE WILL REMAIN RATHER ISOLATED.

OUR NEXT INTERESTING FEATURE ARRIVES LATE TUE. EASTERLY WAVE WHICH
HAS HAD QUITE A HISTORY (FLASH FLOODS IN KY/TN, CURRENTLY YANKING
T.S. BARRY TOWARD THE FL COAST) IS PROGGED BY ALL MODELS TO MOVE W
UNDER THE RIDGE FROM MS/AL, PICK UP AN OTHER EASTERLY WAVE OVER THE
W GULF OF MEXICO, AND THEN MOVE INTO THE NEIGHBORHOOD LATE TUE. EVEN
THOUGH THE ETA/NGM/AVN ARE A LITTLE DIFFERENT WITH THE DETAILS, THEY
ALL FIRE TSTMS OVER THE RIM TUE AFTERNOON AND THEN DROP THEM SW. RIM
SHOTS HAVE BEEN AS MYTHICAL AROUND HERE AS PIXIES AND THE TOOTH
FAIRY SINCE 1998, BUT IT'S HARD TO GO AGAINST SUCH A SCENARIO AFTER
2 DAYS OF STRONG HEATING, NE FLOW OF 20KTS BY 00Z WED, AND 2-3C OF
COOLING IN THE 400-300MB LAYER JUST AHEAD OF THE WAVE(S). WE'LL
START TO RAMP POPS UP ON TUE TO SHOW THE TREND, ALTHOUGH IF WE DO
INDEED GET A RIM SHOT, CLIMATOLOGY WOULD FAVOR TUE EVENING JUST
AFTER 00Z. OBVIOUS CAUTION IS ALSO REQUIRED IN TERMS OF TIMING SINCE
ALL 3 MODELS WERE TOO SLOW WITH THE WAVE WHICH DUMPED ON US
YESTERDAY.

AVN/MRF ARE IN MUCH BETTER AGREEMENT WITH UKMET/ECMWF IN FAVORING A
DEEPER LOW OVER THE CANADIAN MARITIMES AND A CLOSED HIGH TO OUR N.
WITH BARRY GETTING OUT OF THE WAY, THE EASTERLY WAVE(S) MOVING INTO
US LATE TUE MAY BE THE FIRST OF SEVERAL. STANDARD MID/HIGH GRADE
FORECAST STILL LOOKS GOOD, ALTHOUGH I'M SURE WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A
DOWN DAY SOMEWHERE IN THERE, MUCH LIKE WE'RE EXPERIENCING TODAY.
PYTLAK

.TWC...NONE.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Aug 5, 11:15 AM MST, 5 hours 11 minutes before
AZZ019-029>035-060700-

SOUTHEAST ARIZONA HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ
1115 AM MST SUN AUG 5 2001

.SYNOPSIS...SEVERAL WEAK UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCES WILL REMAIN IN THE
AREA THROUGH THIS EVENING. ANY ONE OF THESE COULD TRIGGER
THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING...ALTHOUGH COVERAGE WILL BE
CONSIDERABLY LESS COMPARED TO YESTERDAY AND THEY WILL HAVE A
DIFFICULT TIME MOVING OFF THE MOUNTAINS.

.DISCUSSION...ALTHOUGH ACTIVITY WILL BE DOWN AFTER LAST NIGHT/S
STORMS...UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCES OVER EAST CENTRAL ARIZONA...JUST
SOUTH OF THE PIMA COUNTY-MEXICAN BORDER...AND MOVING NORTH OVER
NORTHWEST CHIHUAHUA COULD ALL TRIGGER A FEW THUNDERSTORMS THIS
AFTERNOON. ONCE AGAIN...THERE IS A WEAK INVERSION AT AROUND 20000
FEET WHICH SHOULD SLOW STORM DEVELOPMENT AND ALLOW THE VALLEYS AND
DESERTS TO HEAT UP. ALTHOUGH WE WILL NOT BE AS WARM AS YESTERDAY...
DEWPOINTS ARE SLIGHTLY HIGHER AND COULD STILL SUPPORT A FEW VALLEY
STORMS...ESPECIALLY FROM TUCSON WEST. MODELS SUGGEST THAT STEERING
WINDS WILL AGAIN INCREASE OUT OF THE EAST THIS AFTERNOON AS THE
WESTERN CHIHUAHUA DISTURBANCE MOVES CLOSER TO THE REGION. IF TRUE...
THAT COULD HELP TO PUSH A COUPLE OF STORM OFF THE MOUNTAINS LATE
THIS AFTERNOON OR EARLY THIS EVENING.

THE RISK OF SEVERE STORMS AND FLASH FLOODING WILL BE A BIT HIGHER
THAN CLIMATOLOGY WEST OF TUCSON WHERE MOISTURE PROFILES ARE DEEPER
DUE TO A RENEWED SURGE OF MOISTURE FROM THE GULF OF CALIFORNIA.
FURTHER EAST IN GRAHAM...GREENLEE AND COCHISE COUNTIES...LESS LOW
LEVEL MOISTURE HAS REDUCED THE THREAT OF BOTH SEVERE STORMS AND
FLASH FLOODING BELOW CLIMATOLOGY. DUE TO THE EXPECT>ED LOW LEVEL WIND
FIELDS...A COUPLE OF STORMS COULD LINGER PAST SUNSET BUT SHOULD NOT
CONTINUE AS LATE AS THEY DID LAST NIGHT.

STORM MOVEMENT WILL BE TO THE WEST AT 15 MPH.

PYTLAK

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 4, 5:29 PM MSTFlash Flood WarningTWCPinal31 min
Aug 4, 7:07 PM MSTFlash Flood WarningTWCPinal

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.