Arizona, 2002

Flash Flood and Damaging Wind in Arizona, September 6, 2002

September 6, 2002 · NWS TWC · 2 events in 1 county or zone

Severe thunderstorms developed early in the afternoon over Ryan Field Airport and produced strong winds and heavy precipitation. A peak wind gust of 80 mph was recorded at Ryan Field Airport.

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

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
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 thunderstorms developed early in the afternoon over Ryan Field Airport and produced strong winds and heavy precipitation. A peak wind gust of 80 mph was recorded at Ryan Field Airport. However, there was no damage reported. The storm also produced heavy rain which caused Valencia road to be barricaded due to the road flooding. Officials at Ryan Field Airport reported an inch of precipitation in 30 minutes. Also, a gage located 4 miles southeast of Ryan Air Field recorded 1.26 inches of precipitation for the entire event.

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 Sep 6, 9:15 AM MST, 4 hours 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Sep 6, 9:15 AM MST, 4 hours 15 minutes before
SOUTHEAST ARIZONA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ
915 AM MST FRI SEP 6 2002

.SYNOPSIS...HIGH PRESSURE TO THE EAST AND A TROUGH ALONG THE
WEST COAST WILL PROVIDE A MOIST SOUTHERLY FLOW THE NEXT SEVERAL
DAYS. THE PROSPECT FOR RAIN WILL INCREASE THIS WEEKEND AS SOME OF
THE REMNANTS OF TROPICAL SYSTEM HERNAN ARE PICKED UP BY THE LOW
PRESSURE SYSTEM ALONG THE WEST COAST.

.DISCUSSION...SATELLITE PICS SHOW SOME LOW/MID CLOUDS OVER THE
WESTERN HALF OF THE CWA...ROUGHLY FROM TUCSON WEST. KEMX WSR-88D
DETECTED ISOLATED LIGHT SHOWERS OVER THE TOHONO OODHAM NATION AND
PORTIONS OF SOUTHEAST PINAL COUNTY EARLIER THIS MORNING...WITH
ECHOES HAVING SINCE DISSIPATED.

SIMILAR SITUATION FOR SOUTHEAST ARIZONA TODAY AS COMPARED TO LAST
COUPLE OF DAYS. KTUS 12Z SOUNDING SHOWS A LITTLE DRIER PROFILE (WITH
PW VALUES OF 1.25 INCHES) AND RELATIVELY DRY LOWER LEVELS. SURFACE
DEWPOINTS WERE IN THE 50S OVER THE EASTERN HALF OF THE CWA AND IN
THE 60S OVER WESTERN HALF. WATER VAPOR AND GOES PW IMAGERY SHOW BEST
MOISTURE FROM ABOUT TUCSON WEST...WITH SOME DRYING NOTED OVER
COCHISE...GRAHAM AND GREENLEE COUNTIES.

IN SHORT...ALTHOUGH MOISTURE IS DECENT...NOT MUCH IN THE WAY OF
FORCING OR DYNAMICS TO GET THINGS ROLLING. WILL HAVE TO RELY ON
DAYTIME HEATING AND TOPOGRAPHY. THEREFORE...EXPECT MAINLY AFTERNOON
AND EVENING STORMS (WITH BEST CHANCES FROM TUCSON WEST)...AND RATHER
HIGH BASED ONES AT THAT...AS HAS BEEN THE CASE IN THE PREVIOUS
COUPLE OF DAYS. STEERING FLOW WILL BE TO THE NORTH-NORTHEAST AT 10
TO 15 MPH. CURRENT FORECAST PACKAGE LOOKS ON TRACK...NO UPDATES.
ZELL

.TWC...NONE.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Sep 6, 11:13 AM MST, 2 hours 17 minutes before
AZZ019-029>035-070700-

SOUTHEAST ARIZONA HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ
1145 AM MST FRI SEP 6 2002

.SYNOPSIS...VERY SIMILAR TO YESTERDAY. MOISTURE HAS INCREASED ACROSS
WESTERN PORTIONS OF SOUTHEAST ARIZONA AND DECREASED OVER EASTERN
PORTIONS OF THE AREA. PROBABILITIES FOR PRECIPITATION GREATER THAN 1
INCH AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS BOTH REMAIN BELOW CLIMATOLOGY.

.DISCUSSION...SIMILAR SITUATION FOR SOUTHEAST ARIZONA TODAY AS
COMPARED TO YESTERDAY. KTUS 12Z SOUNDING SHOWS A LITTLE DRIER
PROFILE (WITH PW VALUES OF 1.25 INCHES) AND RELATIVELY DRY LOWER
LEVELS. SURFACE DEWPOINTS ARE IN THE 50S OVER THE EASTERN HALF OF
THE CWA AND IN THE 60S OVER WESTERN HALF. WATER VAPOR AND GOES PW
IMAGERY SHOW BEST MOISTURE FROM ABOUT TUCSON WEST...WITH SOME DRYING
NOTED OVER COCHISE...GRAHAM AND GREENLEE COUNTIES.

ALTHOUGH MOISTURE IS DECENT...NOT MUCH IN THE WAY OF FORCING OR
DYNAMICS TO GET THINGS ROLLING THIS AFTERNOON. THEREFORE...WILL HAVE
TO RELY ON DAYTIME HEATING AND TOPOGRAPHY. EXPECT THE BEST CHANCES
FOR STORMS THIS AFTERNOON FROM TUCSON WEST. THE STORMS SHOULD BE
RATHER HIGH BASED...AS HAS BEEN THE CASE IN THE PREVIOUS COUPLE OF
DAYS. THE CHANCE FOR SHOWERS AND STORMS WILL CONTINUE OVERNIGHT...AS
BETTER MOISTURE MOVES INTO THE AREA FROM THE WEST AND MINOR IMPULSES
IN THE FLOW MOVE THROUGH WITH THE REMNANTS OF HERNAN. STEERING FLOW
WILL BE TO THE NORTH-NORTHEAST AT 10 TO 15 MPH.
Special weather statement, Sep 6, 11:45 AM MST, 1 hour 45 minutes before
AZZ019-029>035-070700-

SOUTHEAST ARIZONA HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ
1145 AM MST FRI SEP 6 2002

.SYNOPSIS...VERY SIMILAR TO YESTERDAY. MOISTURE HAS INCREASED ACROSS
WESTERN PORTIONS OF SOUTHEAST ARIZONA AND DECREASED OVER EASTERN
PORTIONS OF THE AREA. PROBABILITIES FOR PRECIPITATION GREATER THAN 1
INCH AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS BOTH REMAIN BELOW CLIMATOLOGY.

.DISCUSSION...SIMILAR SITUATION FOR SOUTHEAST ARIZONA TODAY AS
COMPARED TO YESTERDAY. KTUS 12Z SOUNDING SHOWS A LITTLE DRIER
PROFILE (WITH PW VALUES OF 1.25 INCHES) AND RELATIVELY DRY LOWER
LEVELS. SURFACE DEWPOINTS ARE IN THE 50S OVER THE EASTERN HALF OF
THE CWA AND IN THE 60S OVER WESTERN HALF. WATER VAPOR AND GOES PW
IMAGERY SHOW BEST MOISTURE FROM ABOUT TUCSON WEST...WITH SOME DRYING
NOTED OVER COCHISE...GRAHAM AND GREENLEE COUNTIES.

ALTHOUGH MOISTURE IS DECENT...NOT MUCH IN THE WAY OF FORCING OR
DYNAMICS TO GET THINGS ROLLING THIS AFTERNOON. THEREFORE...WILL HAVE
TO RELY ON DAYTIME HEATING AND TOPOGRAPHY. EXPECT THE BEST CHANCES
FOR STORMS THIS AFTERNOON FROM TUCSON WEST. THE STORMS SHOULD BE
RATHER HIGH BASED...AS HAS BEEN THE CASE IN THE PREVIOUS COUPLE OF
DAYS. THE CHANCE FOR SHOWERS AND STORMS WILL CONTINUE OVERNIGHT...AS
BETTER MOISTURE MOVES INTO THE AREA FROM THE WEST AND MINOR IMPULSES
IN THE FLOW MOVE THROUGH WITH THE REMNANTS OF HERNAN. STEERING FLOW
WILL BE TO THE NORTH-NORTHEAST AT 10 TO 15 MPH.

The radar

The Tucson radar (KEMX), 57 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:30 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

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

Thunderstorm Wind, Pima

When
September 6, 1:30 PM MST to 1:40 PM MST
Where
Pima County, Tuscon Ryan Fld Arpt
Measured
80 kt (92 mph)
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates
32.133, -111.167

Flash Flood, Pima

When
September 6, 2:40 PM MST to 4:00 PM MST
Where
Pima County, Tuscon Ryan Fld Arpt
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
32.097, -111.790 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

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.
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.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Arizona in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings 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: 5316881, 5316882.