Arizona, 2002

Flash Flood in Arizona, September 6, 2002

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

Strong thunderstorms developed across southeast Arizona on the afternoon and late evening of the 6th. Several storms continued to develop and move over the town of Green Valley, where law enforcement reported widespread street flooding.

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
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 happened

The episode as NWS TWC wrote it up.

Strong thunderstorms developed across southeast Arizona on the afternoon and late evening of the 6th. Several storms continued to develop and move over the town of Green Valley, where law enforcement reported widespread street flooding. A gage at Continental Road in Green Valley recorded 1.85 inches for the entire event. Another gage, located in Madera Canyon, recorded 1.69 inches of precipitation.

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, 2:00 PM MST, 5 hours 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Sep 6, 2:00 PM MST, 5 hours 15 minutes before
SOUTHEAST ARIZONA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ
200 PM MST FRI SEP 6 2002

.SYNOPSIS...HIGH PRESSURE TO THE EAST AND A TROUGH ALONG THE WEST
COAST WILL CONTINUE TO PULL MOISTURE ACROSS SOUTHERN ARIZONA INTO
THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK. THERE WILL BE THE CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS THROUGH WEDNESDAY OF NEXT WEEK...WITH THE BEST
PRECIPITATION CHANCES OVER THE UPCOMING WEEKEND.

.DISCUSSION...KEMX RADAR SHOWING THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT TAKING
PLACE OVER THE EASTERN TWO-THIRDS OF THE CWA...WITH THE STRONGEST
DEVELOPMENT TO THE WEST/NORTHWEST OF TUCSON IN DEEPER MOISTURE AXIS.
WATER VAPOR AND GOES PW IMAGERY INDICATE THE BEST MOISTURE FROM
TUCSON WEST WITH PW VALUES BETWEEN 1.2 AND 1.5 INCHES. SOMEWHAT
DRIER AIR RESIDES OVER THE EASTERN HALF OF THE CWA WITH PW VALUES
BETWEEN 0.70 AND ONE INCH. A LARGE AREA OF DEEP MOISTURE LIES TO OUR
SOUTH/SOUTHWEST (THE REMNANTS OF HERNAN). AS THE WEST COAST TROUGH
DIGS SOUTHWARD OVER THE NEXT 24 HOURS...SOUTHWEST FLOW OUT AHEAD OF
THIS SYSTEM PICKS UP THE DEEPER MOISTURE TO OUR SOUTH AND BRINGS IT
UP ACROSS SOUTHERN ARIZONA.

TROFINESS THEN EXPECTED TO HANG OVER THE WEST COAST INTO THE MIDDLE
OF NEXT WEEK AS HIGH PRESSURE CURRENTLY CENTERED OVER NEW MEXICO
SHIFTS EAST INTO THE TEXAS PANHANDLE. THIS STILL KEEPS THE DOOR OPEN
FOR MOISTURE TO MOVE ACROSS SOUTHERN ARIZONA FROM THE SOUTH AND
SOUTHEAST. MODEL RH CROSS SECTIONS INDICATE DEEP MOISTURE OVER THE
REGION THROUGH MONDAY THEN SOMEWHAT LESS MOISTURE TUESDAY AND
WEDNESDAY. THEREFORE...HAVE USED SCATTERED WORDING THROUGH SUNDAY
NIGHT (EXCEPT FAR WESTERN PIMA COUNTY) THEN CHANCE WORDING MONDAY
THROUGH WEDNESDAY. TEMPS WILL BE TRICKY NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS
DEPENDING UPON AMOUNT OF CLOUD COVER HANGING AROUND DURING THE
OVERNIGHT AND MORNING HOURS. MODEL GUIDANCE INDICATES BROKEN TO
OVERCAST SKIES INTO SUNDAY...WHICH WOULD HOLD DOWN AFTERNOON HIGHS
AND BOOST OVERNIGHT LOWS. FWC AND AVN GUIDANCE NUMBERS SHOW A BIG
VARIANCE FOR DAYTIME HIGHS AND HAVE LEANED TOWARDS FWC NUMBERS. WILL
GO WITH MOSTLY CLOUDY WORDING TONIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY NIGHT...
HOWEVER FEEL WE WILL CLEAR OUT SOME DURING THE OVERNIGHT AND EARLY
MORNING HOURS...WHICH WILL ALLOW FOR DECENT HEATING EARLY IN THE
DAY.

LATE IN THE EXTENDED (THURSDAY/FRIDAY)...ZONAL FLOW BEGINS TO TAKE
PLACE ACROSS THE REGION...WITH ANOTHER SYSTEM MOVING INTO THE
PACIFIC NORTHWEST. THIS WOULD LEAD TO ADDITION DRYING AND HAVE OPTED
FOR PARTLY CLOUDY WORDING OVER THE EASTERN HALF OF THE CWA AND
MOSTLY CLEAR WORDING OVER THE WESTERN HALF OF THE CWA.
ZELL

.TWC...NONE.

In the hours before

Local storm report, Sep 6, 2:31 PM MST, 4 hours 44 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON ARIZONA
0231 PM MST FRI SEP 6 2002

TIME (MST) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0130 PM    RYAN FIELD                AZ   80 MPH TSTM GUST
09/06/02   PIMA                           NO DAMAGE REPORTED

The radar

The Tucson radar (KEMX), 112 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 02:13 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Pima

When
September 6, 7:15 PM MST to 10:00 PM MST
Where
Pima County, Green Vly
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
32.097, -111.790 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

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.

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: 5316885.