Name: Hail and Damaging Wind in Arizona, July 13, 2008
Start: 2008-07-13T16:47
End: 2008-07-13T17:20
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: $135,000
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 thunderstorms with wet microbursts developed in a very moist environment across portions of Southeast Arizona.

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 13, 2:00 PM MST, 2 hours 47 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 13, 2:00 PM MST, 2 hours 47 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ
200 PM MST SUN JUL 13 2008

.SYNOPSIS...A MOIST UNSTABLE AIRMASS WILL CONTINUE ACROSS SOUTHEAST
ARIZONA THIS WEEK. EXPECT A DAILY CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS.

&&

.DISCUSSION...ANOTHER MORNING OF SHOWERS WITH CONVECTION FIRING
UNDER TRAILING VORT LOBE AROUND WEAKNESS IN OUR FLOW LOCATED JUST
NORTH. TONS OF MOISTURE WITH LESS SOLAR INSOLATION ONCE AGAIN...BUT
AGAIN IT DIDNT TAKE MUCH TO GET GOING ON A LARGER SCALE. LITTLE
SHEAR AND WEAK STEERING LEVEL FLOW SO HEAVY RAIN AGAIN THE CONCERN.
COVERAGE THIS AFTERNOON HAS GENERALLY FAVORED INITIAL AREAS CLOSER
TO THE IMPULSE BUT IS NOW FILLING IN ALMOST EVERYWHERE WE ARE
STARTING TO SEE ANY SUN.

WEAK FLOW CONTINUES WITH LARGER SCALE ILL DEFINED HIGH ACROSS THE
DESERT SOUTHWEST. ANOTHER WEAKNESS IN THIS FLOW IS WORKING NORTH
THROUGH EASTERN ARIZONA TODAY. AFTER ANOTHER BUSY DAY AND EVENING WE
COULD SEE SOME MILD SUBSIDENCE BEHIND THIS FEATURE MONDAY FOR LESS
THUNDERSTORM COVERAGE OVERALL. THE HIGH INITIALLY CONSOLIDATES MORE
SOLIDLY TO OUR EAST THIS WEEK FOR A SOUTHERLY FLOW BUT NOT A STRONG
ONE AS IT WOBBLES NEARBY AT TIMES AND ONCE AGAIN LOOSES FOCUS LATER.

WATCHING THE CONTINUED REACTION OF THE VAMORI WASH IN THE SOUTHERN
TOHONO OODHAM NATION TODAY AS IT HAS CRESTED JUST ABOVE FLOOD STAGE.
IT HAS BEEN SLOW TO RECEDE AND IS NOW STARTING TO ONCE AGAIN SEE A
FEW SHOWERS. CURRENT EXPECTATION IS FOR IT TO FALL BELOW FLOOD STAGE
BY MIDNIGHT.

&&

.AVIATION...EXPECT SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS MAINLY DURING
THE AFTERNOON AND EARLY NIGHTTIME HOURS INTO MONDAY. CLOUD DECKS
WILL GENERALLY BE 4-7KFT AGL...WITH LOWER CEILINGS IN HEAVY RAIN.
VISIBILITIES AT TIMES WITH THE STRONGEST STORMS AS LOW AS 1 MILE
OBSCURING MOUNTAINS. AVIATION DISCUSSION NOT UPDATED FOR TAF
AMENDMENTS.

&&

.FIRE WEATHER...ABUNDANT MOISTURE IN COMBINATION WITH DAYTIME
HEATING WILL LEAD TO MAINLY AFTERNOON AND EVENING SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS THIS WEEK.

&&

.TWC WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE.

WEATHER.GOV/TUCSON

The radar

The Tucson radar (KEMX), 65 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 23:45 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 hail, 1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Cochise

When: July 13, 4:47 PM MST
Where: Cochise County, 5.35 mi W of Hereford
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 31.440, -110.190

A trained spotter reported three quarters of an inch sized hail.

Thunderstorm Wind, Pima

When: July 13, 5:13 PM MST to 5:20 PM MST
Where: Pima County, 0.58 mi E of (Dma)davis Monthan A to 2.93 mi E of (Dma)davis Monthan A
Measured: 56 kt (64 mph) estimated gust
Property damage: $135,000
Reported by: ASOS
Coordinates: 32.170, -110.870

Davis Monthan Air Force Base recorded a gust to 64 mph as the result of a wet microburst. Nearby damage just east of the base included 13 power poles downed and a roof blown off a home and onto several cars in the vicinity of Escalante Road just to the east of Kolb Road.

What these are

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

More

Every storm in Arizona in 2008 Every state in 2008 This day in weather history Warnings in Arizona, July 2008

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: 101958, 101959.