Alert archive / Arizona / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2003

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 39, NWS Flagstaff, AZ

August 14, 2003Yavapai County, Arizona

NWS Flagstaff, AZ issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Aug 14, 2003, 7:42 PM MST for Yavapai County, Arizona. It was in force for 33 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, 7:42 PM MST (02:42 UTC)
Expired
Aug 14, 2003, 8:15 PM MST
In force
33 min
Issued by
NWS Flagstaff, AZ
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Yavapai County, AZ

The radar

The Flagstaff radar (KFSX), 74 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 02:44 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

Flgstf/Belemont, AZ (KFGZ), launched 00:00Z, 2.7 hours before the alert went out and 87 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, Flgstf/Belemont, AZ at 00:00Z on 2003-08-15Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 603 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, Flgstf/Belemont, AZ at 00:00Z on 2003-08-15The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 46 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
603 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-34 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1999 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
28 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
46 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
166 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
5.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WUUS55 KFGZ 150242
SVRFGZ
AZC025-150315-

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

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN FLAGSTAFF HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  EAST CENTRAL YAVAPAI COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL ARIZONA

* UNTIL 815 PM MST

* AT 734 PM MST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 7 MILES SOUTHEAST OF CHERRY...OR ABOUT 6 MILES
  SOUTHWEST OF CAMP VERDE...MOVING SOUTHWEST ALONG I-17 AT 20 MPH. 

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
  CORDES JUNCTION BY 810 PM MST

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 3450 11181 3463 11204 3442 11228 3426 11204

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, 3:05 PM MST, 4 hours 37 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 14, 3:05 PM MST, 4 hours 37 minutes before
NORTHERN ARIZONA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ
305 PM MST THU AUG 14 2003

.SYNOPSIS...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, 10 hours 17 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, 5:00 PM MSTTornado WarningFGZNavajo30 min
Aug 14, 5:26 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZCoconino, Gila, Navajo49 min
Aug 14, 5:35 PM MSTTornado WarningFGZCoconino, Gila, Navajo25 min
Aug 14, 6:01 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZGila44 min
Aug 14, 6:08 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZCoconino22 min
Aug 14, 6:22 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZCoconino, Yavapai23 min
Aug 14, 6:41 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZCoconino, Yavapai34 min
Aug 14, 8:06 PM MSTTornado WarningFGZYavapai24 min
Aug 14, 9:03 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZCoconino, Yavapai42 min
Aug 15, 3:59 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZCoconino31 min
Aug 15, 4:04 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZCoconino26 min
Aug 15, 4:13 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZCoconino32 min
Aug 15, 4:35 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZCoconino25 min
Aug 15, 4:44 PM MSTFlash Flood WarningFGZCoconino61 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.