A significant moisture surge in mid-July aided in producing several flash flood events in southern Utah.
Every event with a place to put it. 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 SLC wrote it up.
A significant moisture surge in mid-July aided in producing several flash flood events in southern Utah.
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 Salt Lake City, UT wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 12, 1:57 PM MST, 33 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SALT LAKE CITY UT 257 PM MDT SAT JUL 12 2008 .SYNOPSIS...HIGH PRESSURE WILL REMAIN OVER UTAH THROUGH NEXT WEEK. TROPICAL MOISTURE OVER THE SOUTH TODAY WILL MOVE FARTHER NORTH SUNDAY AND MONDAY. && .DISCUSSION...ISOLATED CONVECTION BEGINNING TO DEVELOP OVER SOUTHERN UTAH THIS AFTERNOON...ALTHOUGH NOT AS WIDESPREAD OR AS ROBUST AS YESTERDAY. NEVERTHELESS...EXPECT SOUTHWEST UTAH TO GET GOING PRETTY GOOD LATER THIS AFTERNOON...ESPECIALLY OVER ZION PARK. STATIONARY COOL BOUNDARY STILL LINGERING OVER CENTRAL UTAH BUT ONLY SERVING TO HOLD MOISTURE SOUTH TODAY. THIS FRONT WILL ABATE SUNDAY ALLOWING MOISTURE TO MIGRATE NORTHWARD. EXPECT A SLIGHT CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS AS FAR NORTH AS UTAH COUNTY SUNDAY THEN OVER MOST OF THE STATE ON MONDAY. CLOUD COVER HAS KEPT TEMPERATURES AT ST. GEORGE ABOUT 7 DEGREES COOLER THAN AT THIS TIME YESTERDAY AND MAY NOT MAKE THE UPPER 90S AS CONVECTION SHOULD ONLY INCREASE OVER THE REMAINING DAYTIME HEATING. TEMPERATURES PRETTY MUCH THE SAME OR ONLY A BIT WARMER OVER THE NORTH WHICH IS IN LINE WITH PREVIOUS FORECAST. MOISTURE SHOULD CONTINUE ACROSS MUCH OF THE COUNTY WARNING AREA THROUGH WEDNESDAY AND MAYBE INTO THURSDAY. A WEAK SYSTEM MOVES THROUGH THE RIDGE FAR TO THE NORTH WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY AND THIS MAY LOWER TEMPERATURES SLIGHTLY OVER THE NORTH. AS THIS SYSTEM SLIDES OUT INTO THE NORTHERN GREAT PLAINS...THE RIDGE WILL REESTABLISH ITSELF OVER THE GREAT BASIN...ALBEIT FARTHER WEST. THIS WILL CUT OFF THE MOISTURE FLOWING NORTH AND SEND IT FARTHER WEST INTO NEVADA ALLOWING UTAH TO DRY OUT FOR THE END OF THE WEEK. THIS WILL BE SHORT LIVED AS THE RIDGE PROMPTLY BEGINS TO SHIFT EASTWARD INTO THE WEEKEND AND TROPICAL MOISTURE AGAIN BEGINS TO FILTER INTO SOUTHERN UTAH. && .AVIATION....NORTHWEST TO NORTH WINDS WILL CONTINUE AT THE KSLC TERMINAL THROUGH THE AFTERNOON. TYPICAL SOUTHEAST DRAINAGE WIND IS EXPECTED TO BECOME ESTABLISHED AROUND 0300 UTC. HOWEVER...THERE IS A 20 PERCENT CHANCE THAT THE SOUTHEAST WINDS MAY NOT BECOME ESTABLISHED UNTIL AROUND 0500 UTC. && .FIRE WEATHER...DEEP MOISTURE REMAINS IN PLACE ACROSS SOUTHERN UTAH AND A MUCH DRIER LIGHT WESTERLY FLOW ACROSS NORTHERN UTAH. UPPER LEVEL CIRCULATION IS OVER LAS VEGAS AND ROTATING A WEAK DISTURBANCE TOWARD THE ARIZONA BORDER THIS AFTERNOON WITH A DEFORMATION ZONE ACROSS SOUTHERN UTAH. HIGH CLOUDS STARTING TO DISSIPATE IN THE DEFORMATION AXIS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO INCREASE IN COVERAGE THIS AFTERNOON IN THE SOUTH WITH WETTING RAINS. NORTHERN EDGE OF THE MOISTURE IS ABOUT THE SEVIER PLATEAU. THIS EDGE COULD HAVE ISOLATED DRY STRIKES NEXT COUPLE DAYS. ISOLATED ACTIVITY WILL LINGER THROUGH THE NIGHT IN THE FAR SOUTHWEST UTAH DUE TO THE VORT LOBE LIFTING ACROSS THIS CONDITIONAL UNSTABLE REGION. THIS VORT LOBE IS FORECAST BY GFS AND NAM TO LIFT ACROSS CENTRAL UTAH ON SUNDAY IS IT ENTERS WESTERLIES ACROSS NORTHERN UTAH. THIS WILL ALLOW A SLIGHT NORTHWARD PUSH TO THE MOISTURE FIELD INTO NORTH CENTRAL UTAH...TINTIC MOUNTAINS TO BOOK CLIFFS ON SUNDAY. LITTLE CHANGE ON MONDAY WITH DRY AIR HOLDING ACROSS NORTHERN UTAH AND HIGH PRECIPITABLE WATER OVER THE SOUTHERN HALF OF UTAH... ESPECIALLY THE SOUTHERN 4 COUNTIES AND EAST INTO SOUTHWEST COLORADO. THIS PATTERN WILL KEEP HUMIDITIES ELEVATED IN THE SOUTH BUT LOW IN THE NORTH...BUT LIGHT WINDS OUTSIDE OF LOCAL TERRAIN AND CONVECTION EFFECTS. GOOD AGREEMENT ON THE 12/18Z NAM AND 12Z GFS THAT MOISTURE WILL SURGE NORTHWARD MONDAY NIGHT AND TUESDAY AND SPREAD THUNDERSTORMS INTO NORTHERN UTAH. THIS MOISTURE LINGERS INTO AT LEAST MIDWEEK WITH ANOTHER SURGE POSSIBLE LATE IN THE WEEK AND NEXT WEEKEND. BOTH GFS AND ECMWF KEEP THE UPPER RIDGE OVER SOUTHERN UTAH OR THE 4-CORNERS SO WEAK DRIER WESTERLIES PREVAIL IN NORTHERN UTAH AND MOISTURE PERSISTS IN THE SOUTH. && .SLC WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... UT...NONE. WY...NONE. && PUBLIC.........YOUNG FIRE WEATHER...TARDY AVIATION.......GRAHAM FOR MORE INFORMATION FROM NOAA/S NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE VISIT... HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/SALTLAKECITY (ALL LOWER CASE)
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SALT LAKE CITY UT 542 AM MDT SAT JUL 12 2008 UTZ001>016-019>021-517-518-WYZ021-131145- CACHE VALLEY/UTAH PORTION-NORTHERN WASATCH FRONT- SALT LAKE AND TOOELE VALLEYS-SOUTHERN WASATCH FRONT- GREAT SALT LAKE DESERT AND MOUNTAINS-WASATCH MOUNTAIN VALLEYS- WASATCH MOUNTAINS I-80 NORTH-WASATCH MOUNTAINS SOUTH OF I-80- WESTERN UINTA MOUNTAINS-WASATCH PLATEAU/BOOK CLIFFS- WESTERN UINTA BASIN-CASTLE COUNTRY-SAN RAFAEL SWELL- SANPETE/SEVIER VALLEYS-WEST CENTRAL UTAH-SOUTHWEST UTAH- UTAHS DIXIE AND ZION NATIONAL PARK-SOUTH CENTRAL UTAH- GLEN CANYON RECREATION AREA/LAKE POWELL-CENTRAL MOUNTAINS- SOUTHERN MOUNTAINS-SOUTHWEST WYOMING- 542 AM MDT SAT JUL 12 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE WESTERN TWO THIRDS OF UTAH AND SOUTHWEST WYOMING. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A MOIST AIRMASS WILL REMAIN OVER SOUTHERN UTAH...ALLOWING FOR AFTERNOON AND EVENING SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. SOME OF THESE STORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN. THE AIRMASS OVER NORTHERN UTAH WILL REMAIN DRY...RESULTING IN MOSTLY CLEAR SKIES. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY MOISTURE WILL REMAIN OVER SOUTHERN UTAH THROUGH THE WEEKEND BEFORE SPREADING INTO NORTHERN UTAH AND SOUTHWEST WYOMING BY TUESDAY. THIS IS EXPECTED TO RESULT IN MORE WIDESPREAD COVERAGE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. FOR MORE INFORMATION FROM NOAA/S NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE VISIT... HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/SALTLAKECITY (ALL LOWER CASE)
The Cedar City radar (KICX), 70 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 21:28 UTC.
4 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy rainfall caused the North Fork of the Virgin to rise from 42 to 143 cfs, and nearby campgrounds were flooded.
Zion Park Rangers reported that two hikers were stranded along Taylor Creek in the Kolob Canyon section of the park due to a small flash flood. Radar estimated 1.0 to 1.5 inches of rain in the area.
Flash flooding occurred in the town of Ivins, damaging one home. In addition, numerous roads were closed due to the flooding.
Zion Park Rangers observed a flash flood at the headwater areas of the Narrows region of the North Fork of the Virgin River. A rise from 50 cfs to 558 cfs was measured at the North Fork.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Utah in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in Utah, July 2008
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: 127303, 127302, 127305, 127309.