Flash Flood and Damaging Wind in Arizona, July 24, 2001

Name: Flash Flood and Damaging Wind in Arizona, July 24, 2001
Start: 2001-07-24T16:30
End: 2001-07-24T18:00
Location: Arizona

July 24, 2001 · NWS TWC · 2 events in 1 county or zone

Severe thunderstorm moved south into the Douglas area producing damaging winds and flash flood. Downtown Douglas was flooded with water overflowing curbs and flowing into businesses.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $125,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 2

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS TWC wrote it up.

Severe thunderstorm moved south into the Douglas area producing damaging winds and flash flood. Downtown Douglas was flooded with water overflowing curbs and flowing into businesses. A few homes were evacuated with water up to 10 inches deep within the homes. The Port Authority was also closed for an hour due to the flooding with up to 2 inches of standing water in the check in point. Although the storm produced a total rainfall of 3.25 to 4.5 inches of rain within the downtown area, a levy and retention basin near the Municipal airport on the north side of town overflowed into the downtown area. Also, there were 4 swift water rescues on the norhtwest side of Douglas mostly caused by drivers cars stalling within the flooded washes.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, 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 the first event at Jul 24, 2:30 PM MST, 2 hours earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 24, 2:30 PM MST, 2 hours before

SOUTHEAST ARIZONA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ
230 PM MST TUE JUL 24 2001

SYNOPSIS...A LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM OVER CENTRAL CALIFORNIA WILL
COMBINE WITH MONSOON MOISTURE FOR AN INCREASE IN MONSOON
THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY THE NEXT FEW DAYS.

DISCUSSION...CURRENT THINKING IS THAT SURGE MOISTURE IS MOVING UP
THE GULF OF CALIFORNIA...WITH SOME OF THIS ALREADY BLEEDING INTO
STATE. PRECIPITABLE WATER VALUES ARE CONTINUING TO INCREASE ALONG
EAST SIDE OF GULF OF CALIFORNIA...WITH 1.5 INCH VALUES NOW NEAR
PUERTO PENASCO. STORMS ALREADY BREAKING OUT WEST OF TUCSON...IN BEST
MOISTURE FEED AND MOVING NORTHWARD AT A DECENT PACE. STRUCTURE OF
STORMS IS DIFFERENT THAN TYPICAL MONSOON. LOW LEVEL DEW POINT
TEMPERATURES HAVE INCREASED AT CGZ AND TUS SO HAVE UPPED POPS THIS
EVENING. STORMS SEEM TO BE MOVING TOO FAST FOR FLASH
FLOODING...STILL WILL HAVE TO MONITOR.

MODELS FORECAST FORECAST BLOW UP IN MEXICO TONIGHT AND MOVING INTO
SOUTHEAST ARIZONA OVERNIGHT SO HAVE ADDED WORDING TO REFLECT THIS.
IF THIS IS A GOOD SURGE...POPS TOMORROW ARE TOO LOW...BUT PREFER TO
WAIT AND SEE AND LET MIDS HANDLE THIS. STILL HAVE BEEFED UP WORDING
TO PUT US BACK IN STANDARD MONSOON PACKAGE.

.TWC...NONE.

HOLBROOK

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jul 24, 11:47 AM MST, 4 hours 43 minutes before

AZZ019-029>035-250700-

SOUTHEAST ARIZONA HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ
1145 MST TUE JUL 24 2001

.SYNOPSIS...LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM OVER CENTRAL CALIFORNIA WILL
CONTINUE TO PUSH DRIER AIR INTO WESTERN ARIZONA...BUT THERE WILL
STILL BE MID LEVEL MOISTURE IN SOUTHEASTERN PORTIONS OF ARIZONA.
THIS WILL LEAD TO AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING THUNDERSTORMS...MAINLY
OVER THE MOUNTAINS. BEST SEVERE THUNDERSTORM AND FLASH FLOODING
THREATS WILL BE IN THE MOUNTAINS....HOWEVER THIS WILL BE LOWER THAN
CLIMATOLOGICAL VALUES.

.DISCUSSION...SOME CU STARTING TO POP UP AROUND THE CWA.  THE THREAT
OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IS NOT HIGH...AND THE THREAT OF FLASH
FLOODING IS EVEN LOWER THAN THAT.  THE MAJORITY OF THUNDERSTORM
ACTIVITY TODAY WILL BE OVER THE MOUNTAINS...WITH THE BEST CHANCE OF
ACTIVITY OUT EAST WHERE THE BETTER MOISTURE IS LOCATED.  MOVEMENT OF
THESE STORMS WILL BE SLOW.

The radar

The Tucson radar (KEMX), 83 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 23:29 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 flash flood, 1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Cochise

When: July 24, 4:30 PM MST to 6:00 PM MST
Where: Cochise County, Douglas
Property damage: $120,000
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 31.880, -109.751 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Thunderstorm Wind, Cochise

When: July 24, 4:30 PM MST to 5:00 PM MST
Where: Cochise County, Douglas
Property damage: $5,000
Reported by: NWS STORM SURVEY
Coordinates: 31.350, -109.550

Strong winds from a severe thunderstorm lifted a utility shed from a backyard and dropped it on a neighboring fence. Trees and power poles were also knocked down by the damaging winds.

What these are

Flash Flood: Flooding that begins within six hours of the rain that causes it, or of a dam or levee failure or ice jam release, often with deadly speed.
Thunderstorm Wind: Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Arizona in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Arizona, July 2001

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5258506, 5258507.