With high pressure aloft centered over New Mexico, moist southerly flow prevailed over southeast Arizona. Scattered thunderstorms developed in the afternoon, with a few producing strong downburst winds.
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 TWC wrote it up.
With high pressure aloft centered over New Mexico, moist southerly flow prevailed over southeast Arizona. Scattered thunderstorms developed in the afternoon, with a few producing strong downburst winds.
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 25, 2:04 PM MST, 3 hours 21 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ 204 PM MST SAT JUL 25 2009 .SYNOPSIS...AN UPPER LEVEL HIGH OVER NEW MEXICO WILL FEED MONSOON MOISTURE INTO ARIZONA FOR ONE MORE DAY. WHILE NOT IN AN IDEAL LOCATION...THE PLACEMENT OF THE UPPER HIGH WILL SUPPORT SCATTERED MAINLY AFTERNOON AND EVENING THUNDERSTORMS TODAY. THE HIGH IS EXPECTED TO MIGRATE WEST ON SUNDAY...AND BE ALMOST DIRECTLY OVERHEAD BY MONDAY. THAT WILL BEGIN TO SUPPRESS OUR TYPICAL SUMMER THUNDERSTORMS AND SEND TEMPERATURES SEVERAL DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL. BY MIDWEEK..THE HIGH SETS UP IN A HIGHLY UNUSUAL POSITION FOR LATE JULY OVER SONORA. THAT WILL BLOCK MONSOON MOISTURE FROM MOVING NORTH AND ALLOW SLIGHTLY COOLER AIR TO FILTER IN FROM THE NORTHERN PLAINS. && .DISCUSSION...WATER VAPOR IMAGERY SHOWS HIGH PRESSURE OVER SRN NEW MEXICO WHICH IS RESULTING IN SOUTHERLY FLOW INTO ARIZONA. BLENDED TOTAL PRECIPITABLE WATER IMAGERY SHOWS A LARGE AREA OF GREATER THAN 2 INCH VALUES OVER MUCH OF SRN ARIZONA. THIS MORNINGS KTWC SOUNDING SHOWED A PWAT OF 1.71 INCHES AND THE PSR SOUNDING SHOWED 1.97 INCHES. A VORT MAX CAN BE SEEN IN WV IMAGERY GENERALLY JUST WEST OF THE NEW MEXICO BORDER IN EASTERN ARIZONA. THIS SYSTEM HELPED TO TRIGGER THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE SANTA CATALINA MOUNTAINS EARLIER THIS MORNING AND NEARLY AN INCH OF RAIN FELL AT THE PALISADES RANGER STATION IN ABOUT AN HOUR. LAST COUPLE OF SATELLITE PRECIPITATION ESTIMATE MESSAGES INDICATE THAT THE STORMS ARE LIKELY PRODUCING AROUND AN INCH OF RAIN PER HOUR. AS OF AROUND 20Z...RADAR MOSAIC IS SHOWING ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS MAINLY OVER SOME OF OUR MOUNTAINS AT THIS TIME. KEMX RADAR IS INOPERATIVE AT THIS TIME...ALTHOUGH TECHNICIANS ARE WORKING TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM. BASED ON STRENGTH OF THE STORMS USING SATELLITE IMAGERY...LIGHTNING DETECTION AND KIWA RADAR IMAGES...IT LOOKS LIKE THE STORMS OVER SANTA CRUZ COUNTY ARE LIKELY THE STRONGEST AND SUSPECT THEY ARE PRODUCING MODERATE TO HEAVY RAIN. ANOTHER AREA OF CONCERN IS OVER THE MOUNTAINS OF GRAHAM COUNTY. I INCLUDED THE MENTION OF HEAVY RAIN WORDING IN THE GRIDS/ZONES FOR THIS EVENING SINCE IN THIS HIGH PWAT ENVIRONMENT IT LOOKS LIKE HEAVY RAIN AND ASSOCIATED FLOODING CONCERNS WILL BE THE MAIN THREAT WITH THE STORMS THIS EVENING. THE POPS THAT I INHERITED FOR THIS EVENING SEEM TO BE GOOD...SO I DID NOT MAKE ANY CHANGES SINCE THEY SEEM TO MATCH QUITE WELL WITH SATELLITE AND RADAR TRENDS. MODELS INDICATE THAT STARTING TOMORROW THE HIGH WILL BEGIN TO SHIFT WESTWARD WHICH WILL RESULT IN A WEST TO NORTHWEST MEAN FLOW ACROSS THE REGION. THEREFORE...EXPECTING DECREASING RAIN CHANCES EACH DAY AS THE DRIER AIR AND WESTERLY/NORTHWESTERLY PREVAILS. HIGH TEMPS WILL INCREASE THROUGH MONDAY AND REMAIN RATHER WARM ON TUESDAY BEFORE DECREASING BY AROUND MID WEEK AND INTO THE WEEKEND. HOWEVER...TEMPS WILL REMAIN A DEG OR TWO ABOVE 100 EACH DAY THROUGH SATURDAY FOR THE CENTRAL DESERTS. && .AVIATION...SCT-BKN CLOUDS WITH BASES AROUND 12KFT WILL PERSIST THROUGH THE DAY WITH ISOLATED SHOWERS AND TSTM MAINLY OVER THE HIGHER TERRAIN THIS AFTERNOON...ESPECIALLY NEAR KOLS. SOME OF THESE SHOULD MOVE OFF THE HIGHER TERRAIN AND MOVE NORTH TOWARD THE TAF SITES BETWEEN 21Z-03Z. MVFR CIGS/VISIBILITIES IN HEAVY RAIN AND GUSTS TO 35 KTS WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH THIS CONVECTION. AVIATION DISCUSSION NOT UPDATED FOR TAF AMENDMENTS. && .FIRE WEATHER...NO FIRE WEATHER ISSUES AT THIS TIME. HOWEVER...A SIGNIFICANT DRYING AND WARMING TREND WILL BEGIN ON SUNDAY...WITH UNUSUALLY DRY WEATHER FOR LATE JULY EXPECTED DURING THE UPCOMING WEEK. && .TWC WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE. MOLLERE WEATHER.GOV/TUCSON
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ 1057 AM MST SAT JUL 25 2009 AZZ019-029>035-260700- NORTHERN GREENLEE COUNTY-SOUTHEAST PINAL COUNTY- UPPER GILA RIVER VALLEY-WESTERN PIMA COUNTY-TOHONO OODHAM NATION- TUCSON METRO/MARANA/GREEN VALLEY-SANTA CRUZ COUNTY-COCHISE COUNTY- 1057 AM MST SAT JUL 25 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTH CENTRAL ARIZONA AND SOUTHEAST ARIZONA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT AN UPPER LEVEL HIGH OVER WESTERN NEW MEXICO WILL ALLOW A WEAK DISTURBANCE POSITIONED ACROSS FAR SOUTHEAST ARIZONA TO PUSH NORTHWEST ACROSS THE REST OF SOUTH-CENTRAL ARIZONA TODAY. THIS FEATURE ALONG WITH A MOIST ATMOSPHERE AND AMPLE SOLAR HEATING WILL RESULT IN SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TODAY...ESPECIALLY ACROSS CENTRAL AND SOUTH-CENTRAL ARIZONA. THUNDERSTORMS WILL INITIALLY DEVELOP OVER THE HIGHER TERRAIN...THEN PUSH NORTHWEST INTO THE VALLEYS BY EARLY AFTERNOON. GIVEN THE MOIST ATMOSPHERE IN PLACE ACROSS THE AREA...THE MAIN THREAT FROM THESE STORMS WILL BE THE POTENTIAL FOR FLASH FLOODING DUE TO HEAVY RAINFALL. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY THE HIGH IS EXPECTED TO MIGRATE WEST ON SUNDAY...AND DIRECTLY OVER SOUTHEAST ARIZONA MONDAY. THAT WILL BEGIN TO SUPPRESS OUR TYPICAL SUMMER THUNDERSTORMS AND SEND TEMPERATURES SEVERAL DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL. BY MIDWEEK..THE HIGH WILL POSITION ITSELF OVER SONORA MEXICO. THIS POSITION WILL BLOCK MONSOON MOISTURE FROM MOVING NORTH...THUS SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCING THE CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. WEATHER.GOV/TUCSON
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ 1243 PM MST SAT JUL 25 2009 AZZ033-034-252015- SANTA CRUZ COUNTY AZ-TUCSON METRO/MARANA/GREEN VALLEY AZ- 1243 PM MST SAT JUL 25 2009 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SOUTHEASTERN PIMA AND NORTHERN SANTA CRUZ COUNTIES UNTIL 115 PM MST... AT 1241 PM MST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING A STRONG THUNDERSTORM 17 MILES SOUTHEAST OF GREEN VALLEY...MOVING NORTH AT 15 MPH. WIND GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH THIS STORM...ALONG WITH HEAVY RAIN AND FREQUENT DANGEROUS LIGHTNING. AREAS AFFECTED BY THIS STORM INCLUDE...MAINLY RURAL AREAS OF EXTREME NORTHERN SANTA CRUZ AND SOUTHEASTERN PIMA COUNTIES. THIS STORM MAY INTENSIFY...SO BE CERTAIN TO MONITOR LOCAL RADIO AND TV STATIONS...AS WELL AS LOCAL CABLE TV OUTLETS...FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. LAT...LON 3193 11090 3193 11063 3163 11066 3163 11087 TIME...MOT...LOC 1942Z 180DEG 11KT 3172 11076 KD
1 dust storm. Local standard time, as filed.
A trained spotter reported blowing dust, with visibility less than 1/8 mile between Eloy and Picacho. Winds were estimated to be near 50 mph.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Arizona in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyWarnings in Arizona, July 2009
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: 175366.