The Point Fire was started by lightning on Milk Point Ranch about 3 miles northeast of Pine, Arizona was managed for resource benefits. The final size of the fire was 1300 acres.
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The episode as NWS FGZ wrote it up.
The Point Fire was started by lightning on Milk Point Ranch about 3 miles northeast of Pine, Arizona was managed for resource benefits. The final size of the fire was 1300 acres.
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 Flagstaff, AZ wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 31, 1:55 PM MST, 1 hour 5 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ 155 PM MST SUN MAY 31 2009 .SYNOPSIS...A WEAK LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL BRING ANOTHER ROUND OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TO PORTIONS OF NORTHERN ARIZONA THIS EVENING... MAINLY ALONG AND NORTH OF THE MOGOLLON RIM. DRIER WEATHER AND A WARMING TREND WILL BEGIN MONDAY...THOUGH A SLIGHT CHANCE OF AFTERNOON STORMS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH MIDWEEK. && .DISCUSSION...THE UPPER LEVEL LOW THAT HAS BEEN BRINGING THE NEEDED RAINFALL TO NORTHERN ARIZONA IS CURRENTLY CENTERED OVER NORTH AZ ALONG THE STATE LINE. AREA SOUNDINGS INDICATE A DRIER ATMOSPHERE IS IN PLACE OVER WESTERN AND CENTRAL SECTIONS OF THE STATE...WHICH HAS LIMIT THE INTENSITY OF STORMS LATE THIS AFTERNOON. STORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DIMINISH BY AROUND SUNSET. THE WEAKENING UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL MOVE NORTHEAST INTO SOUTHWEST COLORADO BY MONDAY AFTERNOON WITH A BUILDING HIGH PRESSURE RIDGE OVER ARIZONA. THERE WILL BE ENOUGH MOISTURE AND INSTABILITY REMAINING MONDAY AFTERNOON TO ALLOW AN ISOLATED THREAT OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ALONG THE MOGOLLON RIM WITH SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE NORTHEAST. BY TUESDAY...THE HIGH PRESSURE RIDGE ALOFT IS FORECAST TO SET UP OVER THE ROCKIES WITH ARIZONA ON THE DOWN STREAM SIDE OF A CLOSED LOW THAT IS FORECAST TO BE OFF THE CALIFORNIA COAST. SINCE ARIZONA IS FORECAST TO BE BETWEEN THE HIGH AND LOW PRESSURE SYSTEMS...THE PRESSURE GRADIENT ACROSS THE STATE WILL BE STRONG ENOUGH TO ALLOW FOR BREEZY TO WINDY AFTERNOON CONDITIONS TO BEGIN AFTER TUESDAY AND CONTINUE ON INTO THE WEEKEND. BY AROUND FRIDAY MODEL INCONSISTENCY HAVE BECOME LARGE. THE PREVIOUS MODEL FORECAST HAVE BEEN KEEPING THE LOW OFF THE COAST OF CALIFORNIA WITH A STRONGER RIDGE OVER THE STATE. NOW THE LATEST MODEL RUNS ARE BRINGING THE CLOSED LOW INTO SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA WITH THE ECMWF MOVING THE LOW NORTH OF ARIZONA FRIDAY INTO SATURDAY WITH ANOTHER LOW SETTING UP OFF THE CALIFORNIA/BAJA COAST BY SATURDAY. IN COMPARISON THE GFS KEEPS A WEAK LONGWAVE TROUGH ALONG THE COAST WITH A SIGNIFICANT PIECE OF ENERGY MOVING NORTHEAST OVER NORTHWEST ARIZONA. FOR NOW IT WAS DECIDED TO GO WITH A BREEZY FORECAST WITH MAINLY DRY CONDITIONS AND SLIGHTLY COOLER TEMPERATURES. && .AVIATION...FOR THE 00Z PACKAGE...THROUGH 03Z MON...SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL PERSIST OVER AREAS EAST OF A LINE FROM KSGU-KSEZ-KSOW. VARIABLE WIND GUSTS TO 40 KTS AND BRIEF HEAVY RAIN ARE THE MAIN CONCERNS. WEST OF THIS LINE...ISOLATED STORMS ARE FORECAST. AFT 03Z MON... EXPECT CONVECTION TO DISSIPATE WITH SKIES BECOMING SKC-SCT150. AFT 18Z MONDAY...THERE IS A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS WITH BASES AOA 14KFT MSL EAST OF A LINE FROM KANAB UT - WINDOW ROCK...AND A SLIGHT CHANCE WEST OF THIS LINE. AVIATION DISCUSSION NOT UPDATED FOR AMENDMENTS. && .FIRE WEATHER...A LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM OVERHEAD THIS AFTERNOON WILL MOVE EASTWARD TONIGHT. ON MONDAY...A DRIER SOUTHWEST TO WEST FLOW IS FORECAST...AND WILL PUSH THE CHANCE FOR AFTERNOON MAINLY HIGH BASED THUNDERSTORMS TO NORTH OF A LINE FROM KINGMAN TO WINDOW ROCK...WITH A SLIGHT CHANCE OF STORMS SOUTH OF THIS LINE. THE DRYING TREND SHOULD CONTINUE ON TUESDAY WITH JUST A SLIGHT CHANCE OF AFTERNOON STORMS EXPECTED. WEDNESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY...CURRENT INDICATIONS ARE FOR SOUTHWEST FLOW ALOFT TO BRING MUCH DRIER AIR INTO ARIZONA FOR THIS PERIOD. THERE IS A SLIGHT CHANCE OF HIGH BASED AFTERNOON THUNDERSTORMS NORTH OF A LINE FROM KINGMAN TO WINDOW ROCK ON WEDNESDAY. OTHERWISE DRY WEATHER IS FORECAST THROUGH FRIDAY. AN APPROACHING LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM SHOULD PRODUCE SOUTHWESTERLY 20 FOOT WINDS AT 15-25 MPH THURSDAY AND FRIDAY AFTERNOONS...WITH MINIMUM RELATIVE HUMIDITIES DROPPING TO THE 5 TO 15 PERCENT RANGE BOTH DAYS. && .FGZ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE. && PUBLIC.....................TC AVIATION/FIRE WEATHER......DL VISIT WEATHER.GOV/FLAGSTAFF FOR NORTHERN ARIZONA WEATHER INFORMATION.
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ 333 AM MST SUN MAY 31 2009 AZZ004>007-009>017-039-040-010000- KAIBAB PLATEAU-MARBLE AND GLEN CANYONS-GRAND CANYON COUNTRY- COCONINO PLATEAU-NORTHEAST PLATEAUS AND MESAS HWY 264 NORTHWARD- CHINLE VALLEY-CHUSKA MOUNTAINS AND DEFIANCE PLATEAU- LITTLE COLORADO RIVER VALLEY IN COCONINO COUNTY- LITTLE COLORADO RIVER VALLEY IN NAVAJO COUNTY- LITTLE COLORADO RIVER VALLEY IN APACHE COUNTY- WESTERN MOGOLLON RIM-EASTERN MOGOLLON RIM-WHITE MOUNTAINS- BLACK MESA AREA-NORTHEAST PLATEAUS AND MESAS SOUTH OF HWY 264- 333 AM MST SUN MAY 31 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTH CENTRAL ARIZONA...NORTHEAST ARIZONA AND WEST CENTRAL ARIZONA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM MOVING INTO NORTHEAST ARIZONA TODAY WILL BRING ANOTHER ROUND OF THUNDERSTORMS BEGINNING LATE THIS MORNING AND CONTINUING INTO THE LATE AFTERNOON. THE BEST CHANCE FOR STRONG STORMS TODAY IS EAST OF A LINE FROM PAGE...TO WINSLOW...TO SAINT JOHNS. SOME STORMS IN THIS AREA WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING SMALL HAIL AND LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY THE PROBABILITY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.
Lightning started the Point Fire at around 3 PM on May 31st about 3 miles northeast of Pine, Arizona on the Mogollon Rim. The fire was managed for resource benefits and was allowed to burn to a final size of 1300 acres by the time it was contained on June 23rd.
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, May 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: 170362.