June was one of the wettest months recorded in the Pocatello County Warning Area. Percent of normals at the 39 climate data stations ranged from a low of 198 percent at the Malad Airport to 573 percent at the Blackfoot Fire Department.
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 PIH wrote it up.
June was one of the wettest months recorded in the Pocatello County Warning Area. Percent of normals at the 39 climate data stations ranged from a low of 198 percent at the Malad Airport to 573 percent at the Blackfoot Fire Department. 6.63 inches of rain fell at Craters of the Moon National Monument. Record June amounts were recorded at Ketchum Ranger Station with 5.29 inches as well as Burley with 3.07 inches, Idaho Falls with 3.97 inches and the Pocatello Regional Airport with 4.00 inches. The 4.00 inch total at Pocatello was the wettest month ever recorded at the station. 5.85 inches of rain was recorded at the Blackfoot Fire Station. The rains caused extensive flooding and flash flooding along with several mud slides over the Castle Rock burn site in Ketchum closing Warm Springs Road often. A significant flash flood occurred in South Pocatello on June 26th causing extensive damage. A plus side to the enormous amounts of rainfall is that drought status ended in southeast Idaho and area reservoirs filled to their highest level in years.
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 Pocatello, ID wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 31, 8:01 PM MST, 3 hours 59 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE POCATELLO ID 901 PM MDT SUN MAY 31 2009 .UPDATE...WIDESPREAD CONVECTION AFFECTING EASTERN IDAHO AGAIN TODAY. ALTHOUGH THE CELLS APPEARED IMPRESSIVE MOST WERE BOTTOM LOADED WITH BRIGHTEST RETURNS IN THE LOWEST LEVELS...INDICATING HEAVY RAIN AND LITTLE HAIL. WIND GUSTS WERE ALMOST NONEXISTENT WITH MOST CELLS AS WELL TODAY...PEAKING OUT AT 35-40 MPH WITH A COUPLE CELLS. STRONGEST SINGLE CELL OF THE DAY OCCURRED OVER ISLAND PARK AND LOOKED QUITE IMPRESSIVE GIVEN THE HEIGHT OF THE LOWEST ELEVATION SLICE OF THE RADAR BUT PEA SIZE HAIL IS BEST REPORT FROM UNDER THAT STORM. CONVECTION IN SOUTHERN HALF OF THE FCST AREA AND IN THE CENTRAL MTNS HAS TRANSITIONED TO LIGHT SHOWERS AND EXPECT SLOW DISSIPATION BY MORNING. NAM CONTINUES TREND WITH UNSTABLE AIRMASS AND RELATIVELY HIGH PW VALUES INTO MONDAY AFTERNOON SO ANOTHER REPEAT ON THE WAY. SHEAR IS IMPROVED AS WELL. WILL MAKE NO CHANGES TO GOING GRID FCST AT THIS TIME. DMH && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 206 PM MDT SUN MAY 31 2009/ SHORT TERM...TODAY STARTING OUT A BIT LIKE YESTERDAY WITH CONVECTION FIRING ALONG A SURFACE TROUGH STRETCHING FROM SOUTHWEST MONTANA BACK TOWARDS SUN VALLEY. RETURNS ON RADAR SHOW MOVEMENT TOWARDS THE UPPER SNAKE PLAIN CONTRADICTING THE 12Z NAM. ALSO HAVE A MID LEVEL CONVERGENCE BAND ACROSS THE SOUTH CENTRAL HIGHLANDS. THE PACIFIC LOW HAS INCHED CLOSE ENOUGH TO THE COAST FOR LEE SIDE EFFECTS TO SHOW UP OFF THE WEST COAST MOUNTAINS. LOOKS LIKE ONE SMALL CIRCULATION IN OREGON AND ANOTHER IN NORTHERN CALIFORNIA. THESE WILL TRY TO MOVE NORTH AND EAST. THE NAM12 APPEARS TO DEPICT SOMETHING OF A UPPER LEVEL WARM FRONTAL BAND OFF THE OREGON DISTURBANCE SWINGING NORTH THIS EVENING. BOISE SOUNDING THIS MORNING INDICATED .97 INCH PRECIPITABLE WATER SO AIRMASS HAS PLENTY OF WATER. SCATTERED SHOWERS SHOULD DEVELOP IN THE CENTRAL MOUNTAINS WITH A COUPLE TENTHS OF AN INCH PRECIPITATION FROM SOME CELLS THESE EVENING. MODEL SOUNDINGS WHEN MODIFIED FOR AREAS SOUTH OF POCATELLO TO THE STATE LINE YIELD CAPE AROUND 900-1400 J/KG AND THUNDERSTORM WINDS 50-55 MPH WHICH IS APPROACHING SEVERE AND SOMETHING WATCH. MONDAY THE GFS HAS THE PACIFIC LOW CROSSING 130W IN MORE FAVORABLE POSITION FOR SPOKES OF ENERGY TO ROTATING THROUGH THE GREAT BASIN TO BE STRONGER WITH SOUTHERLY WINDS INCREASING VERTICAL SHEAR. THE GFS ALSO STALLS THE LOW NEAR THE COAST TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY SO WE HAVE A COUPLE MORE DAYS OF CONVECTION AHEAD. TONIGHT A SURFACE HIGH SLIDES FROM CANADA INTO MONTANA FORCING NORTHEAST SURFACE WINDS INTO IDAHO. THAT BRINGS POTENTIAL FOR WIND CONVERGENCE ALONG A BACK DOOR FRONTAL BOUNDARY WHICH RESULTED IN A PRETTY SOLID CHANCE OF PRECIPITATION FROM PALISADES ACROSS TO SUN VALLEY. SURFACE WINDS MAY BE STRONG ENOUGH TUESDAY FOR A LAKE WIND ADVISORY ON AMERICAN FALLS RESERVOIR. LONG TERM...THURSDAY THROUGH MONDAY. GFS SLOWLY COMING INTO AGREEMENT WITH ECMWF AS DEEP LOW PRESSURE OFF CALIF COAST COMES ASHORE THUR NIGHT. AS IT DOES...MOISTURE WILL CONTINUE TO PUMP INTO AREA FROM THE SOUTH AND SMALL DISTURBANCES WILL MOVE THRU LONG WAVE PATTERN. AS HAS BEEN ADVERTISED...AFTN/EVENING SHOWERS AND TSTMS WILL FORM EACH AFTERNOON AND LAST THROUGH LATE EVENING HOURS. FORECAST REMAINS THE SAME WITH CHC TO SCHC POPS THRU MONDAY. SUFFICE TO SAY EXTENDED WILL BE QUITE UNSETTLED. RENWICK AVIATION...AS ANTICIPATED...TSTORMS HAVE STARTED FIRING UP ACROSS ENTIRE FORECAST AREA AS DAYTIME HEATING AND REASONABLY MOIST ATMOSPHERE REACT TO INSTABILITY. PRESENTLY ALL TAF SITES ARE VFR BUT UNDER TSTMS MVFR NOT OUT OF THE QUESTION. MAIN CONCERN WILL BE GUSTY WINDS POSSIBLY REACHING UPWARDS OF 50 MPH UNDER AND NEAR TSTMS AS THE DAY PROGRESSES...SMALL HAIL ALSO NOT OUT OF THE QUESTION. CONVECTION SHOULD DIE DOWN BY LATE EVENING WITH CLEARING SKIES AFTERWARDS AND VFR CONDITIONS. RENWICKNG WITH CLEARING SKIES AFTERWARDS AND VFR CONDITIONS. RENWICK && .PIH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE POCATELLO ID 400 AM MDT SUN MAY 31 2009 IDZ017>025-031-032-011300- EASTERN MAGIC VALLEY-SAWTOOTH MOUNTAINS-UPPER SNAKE HIGHLANDS- UPPER SNAKE RIVER PLAIN-LOWER SNAKE RIVER PLAIN- SOUTH CENTRAL HIGHLANDS-CARIBOU HIGHLANDS- CACHE VALLEY/IDAHO PORTION-WASATCH MOUNTAINS/IDAHO PORTION- BIG AND LITTLE WOOD RIVER REGION-LOST RIVER/PAHSIMEROI- 400 AM MDT SUN MAY 31 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EASTERN IDAHO. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT EXPECT SCATTERED AFTERNOON AND EVENING THUNDERSTORMS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY THERE WILL BE DAILY AFTERNOON AND EVENING SHOWER AND THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WE ASK TRAINED SPOTTERS AND CITIZENS TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS WHEN IT IS SAFE TO DO SO. THESE CONDITIONS MAY INCLUDE HAIL...TORNADOES...STRONG WIND...DUST STORMS...SNOWFALL... EXTREME COLD TEMPERATURES...FREEZING RAIN OR HEAVY RAIN...DENSE FOG...AND FLOODING OR ICE JAMS. INFORMATION ABOUT THESE HAZARDOUS CONDITIONS SHOULD BE CALLED INTO YOUR NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE IN POCATELLO USING THE 1-800 SEVERE WEATHER HOTLINE...OR 208-233-0834.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 heavy rain. Local standard time, as filed.
Pocatello Regional Airport recorded 4.00 inches of rainfall for the entire month of June. This was the wettest June on record as well as the wettest month ever recorded for this location.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Idaho in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyWarnings in Idaho, June 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: 185781.