Severe thunderstorms produced rainfall rates of half of an inch in 30 minutes which flooded several streets in Tucson Metro area. 46 inches of rain in 25 minutes.
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.
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.
The episode as NWS TWC wrote it up.
Severe thunderstorms produced rainfall rates of half of an inch in 30 minutes which flooded several streets in Tucson Metro area. Spotters in the Tucson Mountains reported 1.46 inches of rain in 25 minutes. At approximately 1300 MST, two boys were playing in a wash on the corner of South Campbell and East Irvington Roads. The 14 year old boy was swept under by the rising waters through a 24 inch diameter pipe a half a mile downstream before rescued 17 minutes later. The boy was in critical condition and died 4 days after the event occurred. Also, there was a swift water rescue on Campbell and Benson Highway at 1345 MST.
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 31, 8:45 AM MST, 3 hours 45 minutes earlier.
SOUTHEAST ARIZONA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ 845 AM MST TUE JUL 31 2001 SYNOPSIS...HIGH PRESSURE FROM NEW MEXICO TO THE SOUTHERN PLAINS WILL REMAIN STATIONARY WHILE A WEAK TROUGH REMAINS ON THE WEST COAST. PLENTY OF MOISTURE REMAINS IN SOUTHEAST ARIZONA AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP OVER THE AREA TODAY...WITH MORE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS AGAIN WEDNESDAY. DISCUSSION...SATELLITE PICS SHOWING GENERALLY PARTLY CLOUDY SKIES ACROSS THE CWA ATTM...WITH A LITTLE MORE WIDESPREAD CLOUDINESS OVER THE PHOENIX AREA AND PORTIONS OF COCHISE COUNTY. ALREADY SEEING STORM DEVELOPMENT OVER EXTREME SOUTHEAST COCHISE COUNTY...OUT AHEAD OF STRONG EASTERLY WAVE SOUTH OF THE TEXAS BIG BEND. THIS AREA OF MODERATE TO STRONG STORMS (ALREADY!!!) IS IN AREA OF UPPER DIVERGENCE AHEAD OF THE EASTERLY WAVE. WITH DEVELOPMENT OCCURRING THIS EARLY...THIS TELLS ME THAT THERE IS GOOD DYNAMICS WITH THIS SYSTEM...SINCE IT'S TO EARLY FOR THE STORMS TO BE FEEDING OFF OF DAYTIME HEATING. WITH ALMOST NO DEVELOPMENT ACROSS THE CWA YESTERDAY...THERE WILL BE PLENTY OF CAPE TO WORK WITH. 12Z TUS SOUNDING AND GOES TOTAL PRECIPITABLE WATER IMAGERY BOTH INDICATE PLENTY OF MOISTURE ACROSS SOUTHEAST ARIZONA...WITH VALUES IN THE 1.2 TO 2.0 INCH CATEGORY. SOME DRYING IS NOTED OVER FAR WESTERN ARIZONA AND IN THE WHITE MOUNTAINS...HOWEVER SOUTH TO SOUTHEAST FLOW AHEAD OF EASTERLY WAVE SHOULD MOISTEN WHITES BACK UP TODAY. FORECAST LOOKS ON TRACK WITH STORMS DEVELOPING IN COCHISE AND SANTA CRUZ COUNTIES EARLY...SPREADING INTO THE REST OF THE CWA BY THIS AFTERNOON. NO UPDATES TO CURRENT FORECAST PACKAGE AT THIS TIME. ZELL .TWC...NONE.
AZZ019-029>035-010700- SOUTHEAST ARIZONA HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ 1200 PM MST TUE JUL 31 2001 .SYNOPSIS...ABUNDANT MOISTURE IN COMBINATION WITH A STRONG UPPER LEVEL SYSTEM OVER NORTHERN MEXICO WILL PROVIDE A NEAR CLIMATOLOGICAL THREAT OF FLASH FLOODING ACROSS THE REGION. THE THREAT FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IS LOW ALTHOUGH BRIEF WIND GUSTS AND SMALL HAIL MAY ACCOMPANY THE STRONGER STORMS. .DISCUSSION...A DEEP INVERTED TROUGH MOVING TO THE WEST OVER NORTHERN MEXICO WILL PROVIDE THE LIFT NECESSARY FOR THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT ACROSS SOUTHEAST ARIZONA THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. 12Z TUS SOUNDING AND GOES TOTAL PRECIPITABLE WATER IMAGERY INDICATE PLENTY OF MOISTURE ACROSS SOUTHEAST ARIZONA...WITH VALUES IN THE 1.2 TO 2.0 INCH CATEGORY. SOME DRYING IS NOTED OVER FAR WESTERN ARIZONA AND ACROSS THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. HOWEVER INCREASING SOUTHEAST FLOW AHEAD OF THE INVERTED TROUGH SHOULD INCREASE MOISTURE OVER THE WHITES TODAY. THE THREAT FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IS LOW...ALTHOUGH BRIEF WIND GUSTS IN EXCESS OF 40 MPH AND SMALL HAIL MAY OCCUR WITH THE STRONGER STORMS. THE FLASH FLOOD THREAT WILL BE NEAR CLIMATOLOGY ACROSS THE ENTIRE OUTLOOK AREA DUE TO THE AMPLE MOISTURE AND WIDESPREAD COVERAGE OF STORMS. STORM MOVEMENT WILL BE TO THE NORTHWEST AT 15 MPH.
AZZ019-029>035-010700- SOUTHEAST ARIZONA HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ 1200 PM MST TUE JUL 31 2001 .SYNOPSIS...ABUNDANT MOISTURE IN COMBINATION WITH A STRONG UPPER LEVEL SYSTEM OVER NORTHERN MEXICO WILL PROVIDE A NEAR CLIMATOLOGICAL THREAT OF FLASH FLOODING ACROSS THE REGION. THE THREAT FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IS LOW ALTHOUGH BRIEF WIND GUSTS AND SMALL HAIL MAY ACCOMPANY THE STRONGER STORMS. .DISCUSSION...A DEEP INVERTED TROUGH MOVING TO THE WEST OVER NORTHERN MEXICO WILL PROVIDE THE LIFT NECESSARY FOR THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT ACROSS SOUTHEAST ARIZONA THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. 12Z TUS SOUNDING AND GOES TOTAL PRECIPITABLE WATER IMAGERY INDICATE PLENTY OF MOISTURE ACROSS SOUTHEAST ARIZONA...WITH VALUES IN THE 1.2 TO 2.0 INCH CATEGORY. SOME DRYING IS NOTED OVER FAR WESTERN ARIZONA AND ACROSS THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. HOWEVER INCREASING SOUTHEAST FLOW AHEAD OF THE INVERTED TROUGH SHOULD INCREASE MOISTURE OVER THE WHITES TODAY. THE THREAT FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IS LOW...ALTHOUGH BRIEF WIND GUSTS IN EXCESS OF 40 MPH AND SMALL HAIL MAY OCCUR WITH THE STRONGER STORMS. THE FLASH FLOOD THREAT WILL BE NEAR CLIMATOLOGY ACROSS THE ENTIRE OUTLOOK AREA DUE TO THE AMPLE MOISTURE AND WIDESPREAD COVERAGE OF STORMS. STORM MOVEMENT WILL BE TO THE NORTHWEST AT 15 MPH.
The Tucson radar (KEMX), 47 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 19:31 UTC.
1 thunderstorm wind, 1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
At 1230 MST, pima county dispatch reported a 8 inch diamter tree blown down in a residental area. A spotter reported a measured wind gust of 58 mph at 1240 MST.
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood, Pima | 2001-08-03 | 14 | Male | In Water | Direct |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Arizona in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Arizona, July 2001
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: 5258403, 5258402.