Alert archive / Arizona / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2003

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 29, NWS Flagstaff, AZ

August 14, 2003Apache County, Arizona

NWS Flagstaff, AZ issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Aug 14, 2003, 2:29 PM MST for Apache County, Arizona. It was in force for 31 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Aug 14, 2003, 2:29 PM MST (21:29 UTC)
Expired
Aug 14, 2003, 3:00 PM MST
In force
31 min
Issued by
NWS Flagstaff, AZ
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Apache County, AZ

The radar

The Flagstaff radar (KFSX), 182 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:48 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.

Did it verify

Not verified. The Iowa Environmental Mesonet's Cow found no qualifying storm report inside this severe thunderstorm warning while it was in force. That is not proof nothing happened: reports are thin where few people live.

Cow counts a report within 15 km of the polygon while the warning was in force: a tornado for a tornado warning; hail of 1 inch or more, a gust of 58 mph or more or wind damage for a severe thunderstorm warning; a flash flood report for a flash flood warning.

The nearest sounding before it

Albuquerq/Krtlnd, NM (KABQ), launched 12:00Z, 9.5 hours before the alert went out and 252 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, Albuquerq/Krtlnd, NM at 12:00Z on 2003-08-14Temperature 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 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Albuquerq/Krtlnd, NM at 12:00Z on 2003-08-14The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -85 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
1878 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
35 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-85 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
142 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WUUS55 KFGZ 142129
SVRFGZ
AZC001-142200-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ
226 PM MST THU AUG 14 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN FLAGSTAFF HAS EXTENDED THE:

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHEASTERN APACHE COUNTY IN NORTHEAST ARIZONA

* UNTIL 300 PM MST

* AT 224 PM MST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 12 MILES EAST OF LYMAN LAKE STATE PARK...OR
  ABOUT 19 MILES NORTH OF SPRINGERVILLE...MOVING WEST AT 15 MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE...
  OVER HIGHWAY 180 NEAR LYMAN LAKE STATE PARK AT 300 PM MST

HAIL UP TO 1.5 INCHES IN DIAMETER IS POSSIBLE WITH THIS STORM. IF 
YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF THE STORM...TAKE NECESSARY PRECAUTIONS AND 
MOVE TO A SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER.

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

A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 900 PM MST
THURSDAY EVENING FOR EAST CENTRAL ARIZONA.

LAT...LON 3432 10905 3450 10911 3444 10950 3422 10943

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 Flagstaff, AZ wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Aug 14, 9:10 AM MST, 5 hours 19 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 14, 9:10 AM MST, 5 hours 19 minutes before
NORTHERN ARIZONA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ
910 AM MST THU AUG 14 2003

.SYNOPSIS...AFTER THE EXPECTED AFTERNOON SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS
TODAY...A WEAK LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL GENERATE MORE PRECIPITATION
FROM LATE TONIGHT THROUGH MIDMORNING. AFTER ITS PASSAGE...EXPECT
CONTINUED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS EACH AFTERNOON WITH SLIGHTLY
COOLER TEMPERATURES FOR THE NEXT DAY OR TWO.

.DISCUSSION...DYNAMICS AHEAD OF THE INVERTED TROUGH APPROACHING
ARIZONA FROM THE EAST HAS PROMPTED ISSUANCE OF A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM
WATCH THROUGH 900 PM MST FOR AREAS OF SOUTH CENTRAL ARIZONA. SOME
ISOLATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL OCCUR BEYOND THE BOUNDARIES OF
THE WATCH BOX. MOST ACTIVITY WILL OCCUR SOUTHEAST OF A LINE FROM
CANYON DE CHELLY NATIONAL MONUMENT TO PRESCOTT.

AS THE UPPER LEVEL TROUGH PROGRESSES WESTWARD...PRECIPITATION WILL
DEVELOP OVER NORTHEASTERN ARIZONA AROUND MIDNIGHT...MAKING ITS WAY
SOUTHWESTWARD INTO SOUTHERN YAVAPAI COUNTY TOMORROW MORNING. WHILE
MUCH OF THE RAINFALL WILL BE SHOWERY OR EVEN STRATIFORM...EXPECTED
ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS TO OCCUR THROUGH THE NIGHT. COOL AIR NEAR THE
SURFACE TOMORROW WILL DELAY THE ONSET OF SIGNIFICANT CONVECTION
UNTIL LATER IN THE DAY...BUT PROBABILITIES FOR MORE ACTIVITY REMAIN
HIGH DUE TO DEEP MOISTURE AND COOL AIR ALOFT. EARLIEST CONVECTION
WILL BEGIN IN EASTERN ZONES AS THEY LOSE A BIT OF CLOUD COVER. WITH
SOILS IN YAVAPAI COUNTY ALREADY MOIST...WILL BE WATCHING RAINFALL
AMOUNTS CLOSELY FOR FLOODING POTENTIAL TOWARD MORNING. ON
SATURDAY...LOOK FOR POPS TO RECEDE TO MORE SEASONABLE LEVELS THOUGH
TEMPERATURES WILL REMAIN RATHER COOL THROUGH THE WEEKEND.

FOR THE EXTENDED...THE UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL MOVE NORTHWARD OUT OF
THE STATE LEAVING A RATHER NONDESCRIPT PRESSURE PATTERN OVER
ARIZONA. EXPECT CONTINUED...DAILY AFTERNOON AND EVENING SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS. HOWARD

.FGZ...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR AZ ZONES 8/13/14/16/17/18/37
THROUGH 900 PM MST.

.CODED TEMPERATURES/POPS FOR SELECTED CITIES IN NORTHERN ARIZONA

CITY             TEMPERATURES LO/HI           PROBABILITY OF PRECIP
                 TON FRI   SAT     SUN        TON FRI   SAT     SUN
FLAGSTAFF        052/069 049/072 047/075      080 060 030 040 030 040
WINSLOW          063/081 060/083 058/087      060 050 020 020 020 020
PRESCOTT         062/079 060/079 059/082      070 060 030 030 020 020
PAGE             071/086 070/086 062/087      050 050 020 030 020 020
WINDOW ROCK      052/078 050/077 050/080      050 060 030 040 030 040
CANYON DE CHELLY 060/084 058/083 058/086      040 050 020 030 020 030
COTTONWOOD       070/093 068/094 067/098      060 050 020 020 020 020
GRAND CANYON     053/071 051/073 047/076      060 050 030 030 020 040
GREER            049/064 046/067 044/070      080 070 040 060 040 050
HEBER            054/074 051/077 049/080      080 070 040 050 030 040
JACOB LAKE       050/069 049/072 047/075      060 050 020 030 030 040
NAVAJO N.M.      064/080 063/081 062/084      060 050 020 030 030 040
PAYSON           062/083 060/083 059/086      060 060 030 030 020 020
SEDONA           067/087 065/087 064/090      060 060 020 030 020 020
SELIGMAN         062/082 060/082 058/086      040 040 020 020 020 030
SHOW LOW         059/074 056/076 054/080      060 060 030 040 030 030
ST. JOHNS        057/081 056/080 055/084      040 040 030 020 020 030
WUPATKI N.M.     064/083 061/085 059/089      060 050 020 020 020 020
Hazardous weather outlook, Aug 14, 9:25 AM MST, 5 hours 4 minutes before
AZZ004>018-037>040-150200-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ
925 AM MST THU AUG 14 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR APACHE...COCONINO...NORTHERN
GILA...NAVAJO...AND YAVAPAI COUNTIES IN NORTHERN ARIZONA.

.DAY ONE...TODAY

CONVECTION WILL BEGIN TO FIRE FIRST OVER EASTERN PORTIONS OF
NORTHERN ARIZONA. CONVECTION OVER CENTRAL AND WESTERN PORTIONS WILL
BE DELAYED DUE TO CLOUD COVER INHIBITING SURFACE HEATING. EXPECT
SCATTERED COVERAGE. WITH SOILS ALREADY MOIST...WATCH FOR LOCALIZED
NUISANCE FLOODING IN SOME AREAS. EXPECT MORE WIDESPREAD
PRECIPITATION BETWEEN MIDNIGHT AND MIDMORNING ON FRIDAY AS DYNAMICS
ASSOCIATED WITH APPROACHING WEAK LOW PRESSURE CONTRIBUTE TO
INCREASED RAINFALL.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY

THE PROBABILITY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER
CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.

DEFINITION OF HAZARDOUS WEATHER...A WEATHER EVENT POSING A THREAT
TO LIFE AND PROPERTY.

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 14, 2:06 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZApache24 min
Aug 14, 2:15 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZApache30 min
Aug 14, 2:48 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZApache42 min
Aug 14, 3:08 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZApache, Navajo37 min
Aug 14, 3:42 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZNavajo48 min
Aug 14, 4:51 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZGila39 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Arizona, 2003Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2003

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.