A moist atmosphere across southeast Arizona fueled scattered afternoon and evening thunderstorms. Some cooling of temperatures in the middle levels of the atmosphere allowed for greater instability, and some storms produced small hail and strong to severe downburst winds.
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 TWC wrote it up.
A moist atmosphere across southeast Arizona fueled scattered afternoon and evening thunderstorms. Some cooling of temperatures in the middle levels of the atmosphere allowed for greater instability, and some storms produced small hail and strong to severe 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 Sep 6, 2:00 PM MST, 2 hours 38 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ 200 PM MST SUN SEP 6 2009 .SYNOPSIS...PLENTY OF MOISTURE AROUND FOR A CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TO START THE WEEK...A FEW WITH HEAVY RAIN. EXPECT A SLOW DECREASE IN MOISTURE AS A TROUGH PUSHES THROUGH THE GREAT BASIN NORTH OF US...BUT WE SHOULD HANG ON TO ENOUGH FOR A FEW AFTERNOON AND EVENING SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS THROUGH THE COMING WEEK. && .DISCUSSION...SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY STEADY THROUGH THE MORNING AND EARLY AFTERNOON. PLENTY OF MOISTURE WITH PRECIPITABLE WATER VALUES BETWEEN 1.2 AND 1.5 INCHES AND SURFACE DEWPTS IN THE MID 50S TO LOWER 60S. DEWPTS HAVE ACTUALLY HAD A LITTLE HARDER TIME HOLDING TODAY COMPARED TO YESTERDAY...STARTING TO SEE A LITTLE MORE ROOM FOR MIXING OUT IN LOWER LEVELS. FOR TODAY...SOME MID LEVEL COOLING HAS HELPED DESTABILIZE THINGS EVEN MORE. WE HAVE HAD LITTLE PROBLEM GETTING STORMS GOING TO A SCATTERED COVERAGE...MAYBE A BIT HIGHER IN FAVORED LOCATIONS. SLOW MOVERS SHOULD DROP A LOT OF RAIN FAIRLY QUICKLY...BUT DONT EXPECT IT TO BE A WIDESPREAD ENOUGH PROBLEM TO NEED A WATCH. SOME ACTIVITY SHOULD LINGER OVERNIGHT AGAIN BUT PROBABLY LESS THAN RECENT NIGHTS. TROUGH PUSHING THROUGH THE NORTHERN AND CENTRAL BASIN GENERALLY NORTH OF US OVER THE NEXT 36 HOURS...THIS WILL HELP THE CHANCE OF SHOWERS EVEN THIS FAR SOUTH...BUT WILL PROBABLY START TO SEE SLOW DRYING AS WELL. RIDGE BUILDING ACROSS THE WEST THE SECOND HALF OF THE WEEK FOR ANOTHER HEATING TREND. SHOULD HANG ON TO ENOUGH MOISTURE FOR ISOLATED TO LOW END SCATTERED CONVECTION THROUGH THE WEEK...AND COULD RE-IMPORT A BIT MORE IF THE HIGH CENTER CONSOLIDATES NORTH OF US AS SOME MODELS ARE TRYING TO SHOW. && .AVIATION...SCT SHRA/TSRA WITH LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL THROUGH THE EVENING HOURS TONIGHT BEFORE DIMINISHING LATE TONIGHT. LOCAL MVFR CIGS/VSBYS ASSOCIATED WITH THE STRONGEST STORMS...OTHERWISE CLOUD DECKS 5-8K FT AGL OUTSIDE SHRA/TSRA. LIGHT DIURNALLY DRIVEN SURFACE WINDS OUTSIDE OF GUSTY OUTFLOW WINDS WITH THE STORMS. AVIATION DISCUSSION NOT UPDATED FOR TAF AMENDMENTS. && .FIRE WEATHER...NO FIRE WEATHER CONCERNS ARE EXPECTED THIS WEEK. && .TWC WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE. WEATHER.GOV/TUCSON
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ 810 AM MST SUN SEP 6 2009 AZZ031-032-070700- WESTERN PIMA COUNTY-TOHONO OODHAM NATION- 810 AM MST SUN SEP 6 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTH CENTRAL ARIZONA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT ISOLATED TO SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP LATER THIS MORNING INTO THE AFTERNOON HOURS ACROSS WESTERN AND CENTRAL PIMA COUNTY. THE CHANCE OF PRECIPITATION WILL THEN CONTINUE INTO THE EVENING HOURS TONIGHT BEFORE DIMINISHING LATER TONIGHT. THE MAIN THREAT FROM ANY STORMS THAT DO DEVELOP WILL BE HEAVY RAINFALL DUE TO A MOIST AIRMASS IN PLACE ACROSS SOUTH CENTRAL ARIZONA. STORM MOVEMENT WILL BE TO THE EAST/NORTHEAST AT 5 TO 10 MPH. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY ALTHOUGH THE MOIST AIRMASS OVER SOUTH CENTRAL ARIZONA IS EXPECTED TO DRY OVER THE NEXT WEEK...THERE WILL STILL BE ENOUGH RESIDUAL MOISTURE FOR A SLIGHT CHANCE OF SHOWER AND THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT EACH DAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. AZZ019-029-030-033>035-070700- NORTHERN GREENLEE COUNTY-SOUTHEAST PINAL COUNTY-UPPER GILA RIVER VALLEY-TUCSON METRO/MARANA/GREEN VALLEY-SANTA CRUZ COUNTY-COCHISE COUNTY- 810 AM MST SUN SEP 6 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST ARIZONA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPMENT THIS MORNING...WILL BECOME MORE NUMEROUS LATER THIS MORNING AND INTO THE AFTERNOON HOURS ACROSS THE EASTERN TWO-THIRDS OF SOUTHEAST ARIZONA. THE CHANCE OF PRECIPITATION WILL THEN CONTINUE INTO THE EVENING HOURS TONIGHT BEFORE DIMINISHING LATE TONIGHT. THE MAIN THREAT FROM ANY OF THE STORMS TODAY AND TONIGHT WILL BE HEAVY RAINFALL DUE TO A MOIST AIRMASS IN PLACE. STORM MOVEMENT WILL BE TO THE EAST/NORTHEAST AT 5 TO 10 MPH. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY ALTHOUGH THE DEEP MOIST AIRMASS WILL DRY OVER THE NEXT WEEK...PLENTY OF MOISTURE WILL BE PRESENT FOR A CHANCE OF MAINLY AFTERNOON AND EVENING SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. STORMS WILL HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO PRODUCE LOCALIZED FLASH FLOODING AND STRONG DAMAGING THUNDERSTORM OUTFLOW WINDS. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. WEATHER.GOV/TUCSON
The Tucson radar (KEMX), 51 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 23:37 UTC.
1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A trained spotter measured a thunderstorm wind gust of 62 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, September 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: 187321.