Name: Hail in Arizona, September 18, 2002
Start: 2002-09-18T11:30
End: 2002-09-18T11:30
Location: Arizona

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. 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: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 1

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 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 Flagstaff, AZ wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Sep 18, 9:25 AM MST, 2 hours 5 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Sep 18, 9:25 AM MST, 2 hours 5 minutes before

NORTHERN ARIZONA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ
925 AM MST WED SEP 18 2002

.SYNOPSIS...A TROUGH OF LOW PRESSURE WILL MOVE ACROSS NORTHERN
ARIZONA TODAY. THIS WILL BRING WINDY CONDITIONS...AND COOLER
TEMPERATURES TO THE NORTHLAND. THERE WILL BE A CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS OVER EASTERN ARIZONA INTO THE EVENING HOURS. HIGH
PRESSURE WILL RETURN ON THURSDAY...WITH MOSTLY CLEAR SKIES EXPECTED.

.DISCUSSION...LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM OVER COLORADO WILL DRAG A S/WV
INTO EASTERN ARIZONA TODAY. THIS SAME LOW ALSO INDUCED A SURGE
OVERNIGHT WHICH HAS SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED MOISTURE IN THE BOUNDARY
LAYER. COOLING AT THE MID LEVELS COMBINED WITH SHEAR AND MOISTURE
WILL COME TOGETHER FOR AN ACTIVE DAY OVER THE EASTERN ZONES. IN
ADDITION TO THIS...WINDS AHEAD OF THE TROUGH ARE REACHING 40 KTS IN
THE EASTERN ZONES...AND A NPW IS IN EFFECT. POPS HAVE BEEN INCREASED
IN THE EASTERN ZONES AS WELL...BUT WILL FURTHER UPDATE THE FIRST
PERIOD TO FINE TUNE LOCATION OF EARLY CONVECTION. SYSTEM WILL PULL
OUT TONIGHT WITH CLEARING AND A MUCH MORE STABLE AIRMASS. PETERSON.

.FGZ...WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 3 PM MST FOR ZONES 11>14 16>18 AND 40.

.CODED TEMPERATURES/POPS FOR SELECTED CITIES IN NORTHERN ARIZONA

CITY             TEMPERATURES HI/LO           PROBABILITY OF PRECIP
                 TDY TON   THU     FRI        TDY TON   THU   FRI
FLAGSTAFF        069/037 067/035 072/040      000 000 000 000 000 000
WINSLOW          080/047 079/044 084/050      020 000 000 000 000 000
PRESCOTT         079/047 078/045 083/050      000 000 000 000 000 000
PAGE             080/054 078/052 081/057      020 000 000 000 000 000
WINDOW ROCK      068/033 068/031 071/036      040 020 000 000 000 000
CANYON DE CHELLY 074/040 074/038 077/043      040 020 000 000 000 000
COTTONWOOD       090/055 089/053 094/058      000 000 000 000 000 000
GRAND CANYON     070/038 068/036 073/041      000 000 000 000 000 000
GREER            066/036 064/034 069/039      040 000 000 000 000 000
HEBER            074/040 072/038 077/043      030 000 000 000 000 000
JACOB LAKE       066/037 064/035 069/040      000 000 000 000 000 000
NAVAJO N.M.      066/039 066/037 069/042      030 020 000 000 000 000
PAYSON           083/047 082/045 087/050      020 000 000 000 000 000
SEDONA           087/054 086/052 091/057      000 000 000 000 000 000
SELIGMAN         082/040 081/038 086/043      000 000 000 000 000 000
SHOW LOW         075/046 073/044 078/049      030 000 000 000 000 000
ST. JOHNS        076/043 075/040 080/046      030 000 000 000 000 000
WUPATKI N.M.     082/049 081/046 086/052      000 000 000 000 000 000

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Sep 18, 9:15 AM MST, 2 hours 15 minutes before

AZZ004>018-037>040-181930-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ
915 AM MST TUE SEP 18 2002

...SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS EXPECTED OVER PORTIONS OF
MAINLY EASTERN ARIZONA TODAY...

...WIND ADVISORY OVER MUCH OF EASTERN AND CENTRAL ARIZONA UNTIL 3 PM
MST...

A LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM OVER COLORADO COMBINED WITH A SIGNIFICANT
MOISTURE INCREASE FROM NORTHERN MEXICO WILL BRING SCATTERED SHOWERS
AND THUNDERSTORMS TO PORTIONS OF EASTERN ARIZONA TODAY. SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS ARE ALREADY OCCURRING OVER THE EASTERN RIM AND WHITE
MOUNTAINS...AS WELL AS THE NORTHEAST PLATEAUS AND MESAS. THE BEST
CHANCE FOR CONTINUED STORM ACTIVITY TODAY WILL BE MAINLY EAST OF A
LINE FROM PAYSON TO WINSLOW NORTHEAST TO THE 4-CORNERS. MOST STORMS
WILL CONTAIN GUSTY WINDS AND LIGHT TO MODERATE RAIN. DUE TO THE
RECENT RAINFALL OVER THE STATE...SOME AREAS NORTH OF THE RIM WILL
HAVE A LOW TO MODERATE CHANCE FOR MINOR FLOODING.

IN ADDITION TO THE RAIN...THE LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL BRING VERY
WINDY CONDITIONS TO PORTIONS OF EASTERN AND CENTRAL ARIZONA TODAY. A
WIND ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT FROM FLAGSTAFF EASTWARD UNTIL 3 PM MST.
AREAS IN THE WIND ADVISORY WILL EXPERIENCE WIND GUSTS AS HIGH AS 45
MPH THROUGH THE AFTERNOON.

BURNED AREA RAIN OUTLOOK...

RODEO-CHEDISKI BURN AREA...EXPECT SCATTERED SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS THROUGH THE AFTERNOON. THE HEAVIER SHOWERS MAY PRODUCE
UP TO A HALF INCH OF RAIN.

INDIAN BURN AREA...NO SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS EXPECTED TODAY.

The radar

The Flagstaff radar (KFSX), 45 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 18:28 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 hail. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Coconino

When: September 18, 11:30 AM MST
Where: Coconino County, Mormon Lake
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 34.917, -111.467

One inch hail was reported in Forest Lakes (40 Miles southeast of Mormon Lake).

What these are

Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Arizona in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in Arizona, September 2002

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: 5320868.