A deep and cold winter storm system appoaching Arizona brought strong winds and blowing dust to areas northeast of major terrain features such as the Mogollon Rim and San Fransisco Peaks.
Every event with a place to put it; 3 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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 FGZ wrote it up.
A deep and cold winter storm system appoaching Arizona brought strong winds and blowing dust to areas northeast of major terrain features such as the Mogollon Rim and San Fransisco Peaks.
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 Nov 9, 9:30 AM MST, 1 hour 55 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ 930 AM MST FRI NOV 9 2012 .SYNOPSIS...A STRONG COLD FRONT SYSTEM WILL MOVE ACROSS NORTHERN ARIZONA THIS EVENING. POWERFUL SOUTHWEST WINDS WILL BLOW TODAY AND SHOWER COVERAGE WILL INCREASE THIS AFTERNOON. SNOW LEVELS WEST OF FLAGSTAFF WILL LOWER TO 6000 FEET THIS EVENING. SNOW LEVELS WILL FALL AS LOW AS 3000 FEET BY SATURDAY AFTERNOON ACROSS THE NORTHLAND. EXPECT A FEW INCHES OF SNOWFALL ABOVE 6000 FEET TONIGHT WITH LIGHT ACCUMULATIONS ABOVE 5000 FEET SATURDAY. HIGH TEMPERATURES WILL BE WELL BELOW NORMAL THIS WEEKEND. && .DISCUSSION...A STRONG WINTER LIKE SYSTEM WILL MOVE OVER THE AREA THROUGH THE NEXT 24 TO 36 HOURS...AND AS ALWAYS SOME COMPLEX FEATURES ADDING TO THE OVERALL SYSTEM AND COMPLEXITY OF THE WEATHER SCENARIO. SHORT TERM: FIRST FEATURE IS THE POCKET OF UNSTABLE AIR ASSOCIATED WITH A WEAK SHORTWAVE MOVING THROUGH GILA COUNTY AND THE WHITE MOUNTAINS AREA OF SOUTHERN NAVAJO AND APACHE COUNTIES. HELPING TO PRODUCE AN AREA OF SHOWERS AND ISOLD THUNDERSTORMS. SO FAR THE STRONG WINDS HAVE NOT BEEN MATERIALIZING OVER A PORTION OF THE AREA AS FORECAST. LATEST OBSERVATIONS ARE SHOWING SOME GUSTS COMING UP ALONG THE MOGOLLON RIM AND THE KAIBAB AND COCONINO PLATEAU INCREASING FROM 40-55 MPH. HOUSE ROCK VALLEY AND MARBLE CANYON SHOWING THAT THE WINDS DID OCCUR OVER THAT AREA WITH GUSTS AROUND 55 MPH. DONEY PARK THE STRONG WINDS ARE JUST BEGINNING WITH GUSTS TO 55 MPH...HOWEVER THE WINDS DID NOT HAPPEN OVER THIS AREA OVERNIGHT DUE TO THE PRECIPITATION...PRECIP TENDS TO KEEP THE HIGHER WINDS ALOFT FROM MIXING TO THE SURFACE. FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE DAY...THE PRESSURE GRADIENTS WILL INCREASE AS THE FRONT APPROACHES FROM THE NORTHWEST AND THE WINDS ALOFT AT AROUND 10-12KFT WILL INCREASE TO OVER 60 MPH. THERE WILL BE A BREAK IN THE PRECIP THIS MORNING AND INTO THE AFTERNOON...WITH THAT SAID WE ARE STILL ANTICIPATING THAT THE WINDS WILL GET ALOT STRONGER LATER THIS MORNING AND AFTERNOON. SO THE CURRENT WIND ADVISORY AND HIGH WIND WARNING WILL CONTINUE UNTIL 8 PM MST. THE FRONTAL PRECIPITATION...WILL PUSH INTO THE GRAND CANYON COUNTRY THIS EVENING...FLAGSTAFF AREA BEFORE JUST MIDNIGHT...EASTERN MOGOLLON RIM AND BLACK MESA AREA BETWEEN 1-3 AM MST...AND THE CHUSKA AND WHITE MOUNTAINS JUST BEFORE SUNRISE. EXPECTING MODERATE RAIN/SNOW SHOWERS WITH THE FRONT...RAPIDLY DROPPING SNOW LEVELS BEHIND THE FRONT. SNOW LEVELS ALONG THE FRONT 6500 TO 7000 FEET...BY MIDNIGHT SNOW LEVELS DROPPING TO 5500 TO 6500 FEET BEHIND THE FRONT...JUST BEFORE SUNRISE SNOW LEVELS BEHIND THE FRONT DOWN TO 4000 TO 5000 FEET. SNOW AMOUNTS...STILL LOOK TO BE AROUND 1-3 INCHES OVER THE HIGHER TERRAIN ABOVE 5000 FEET THROUGH SATURDAY MORNING. && .AVIATION...FOR THE 18Z PACKAGE...A STRONG COLD FRONT WILL THROUGH NORTHERN ARIZONA THIS EVENING. TIL 03Z...EXPECT SOUTHWEST SFC WIND GUSTS TO 50 KTS THEN DECREASE TO 30 KT. SCATTERED -SHRA AND ISOLD TSRA WILL CONTINUE. WIDESPREAD MVFR AND ISOLATED IFR CEILINGS TODAY WILL PERSIST IN MOIST UPSLOPE FLOW. TONIGHT...SNOW LEVELS FALL TO BETWEEN 5000 TO 7000 FEET MSL WITH INCREASING PRECIPITATION COVERAGE AND IFR VISIBILITIES. DISCUSSION NOT UPDATED FOR AMENDMENTS. && .FGZ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... HIGH WIND WARNING UNTIL 8 PM MST THIS EVENING FOR AZZ012>014. WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 8 PM MST THIS EVENING FOR AZZ004>007-009>011- 015>017-039-040. PUBLIC.........TC AVIATION.......DL FOR NORTHERN ARIZONA WEATHER INFORMATION VISIT WEATHER.GOV/FLAGSTAFF
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ 438 AM MST FRI NOV 9 2012 AZZ004>018-037>040-100800- KAIBAB PLATEAU-MARBLE AND GLEN CANYONS-GRAND CANYON COUNTRY- COCONINO PLATEAU-YAVAPAI COUNTY MOUNTAINS- 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- NORTHERN GILA COUNTY-YAVAPAI COUNTY VALLEYS AND BASINS- OAK CREEK AND SYCAMORE CANYONS-BLACK MESA AREA- NORTHEAST PLATEAUS AND MESAS SOUTH OF HWY 264- 438 AM MST FRI NOV 9 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EAST CENTRAL ARIZONA...NORTH CENTRAL ARIZONA...NORTHEAST ARIZONA AND WEST CENTRAL ARIZONA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A COLD AND WINDY STORM SYSTEM WILL MOVE INTO NORTHERN ARIZONA TODAY...BRINGING STRONG WINDS TO AREAS FROM THE MOGOLLON RIM AND WHITE MOUNTAINS NORTHWARD...ESPECIALLY IN THE LITTLE COLORADO RIVER VALLEY WHERE A HIGH WIND WARNING IS IN EFFECT. WIND ADVISORIES ARE IN EFFECT FOR THE REMAINDER OF NORTHERN ARIZONA FROM THE MOGOLLON RIM AND WHITE MOUNTAINS NORTHWARD. EXPECT WIND GUSTS UP TO 60 MPH IN THE LITTLE COLORADO RIVER VALLEY ALONG WITH AREAS OF BLOWING DUST. IN ADDITION TO THE STRONG WINDS...A COLD FRONT SWEEPING ACROSS THE STATE THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH TONIGHT WILL BRING WIDESPREAD PRECIPITATION AND RAPIDLY LOWERING SNOW LEVELS. A FEW INCHES OF SNOW ACCUMULATION IS LIKELY BY SATURDAY MORNING ABOVE 6000 FEET ELEVATION. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY SCATTERED SHOWERS WILL CONTINUE SATURDAY WITH COLD TEMPERATURES ONLY REACHING INTO THE 30S AND 40S FOR MOST OF NORTHERN ARIZONA. SPOTTY ADDITIONAL SNOW ACCUMULATIONS OF A FEW INCHES ARE POSSIBLE ABOVE 5000 FEET ELEVATION...WITH SOME BRIEF SNOW SHOWERS POSSIBLE AS LOW AS 3000 FEET. SHOWERS WILL TAPER OFF SUNDAY MORNING WITH DRY WEATHER RETURNING THROUGH WEDNESDAY. THIS COLD AIR MASS WILL LIKELY BRING THE COLDEST OVERNIGHT LOWS OF THE SEASON BY SUNDAY OR MONDAY MORNING. ANOTHER STORM SYSTEM IS POSSIBLE BY THURSDAY...WITH THE POTENTIAL FOR HIGH ELEVATION SNOW. .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.
2 high wind, 1 dust storm. Local standard time, as filed.
The Winslow ASOS reported less than 3 miles visibility in blowing dust for over two hours. A trained spotter one mile east of Winslow reported one mile visibility in blowing dust at 1255 PM.
The Arizona Department of Transportation anemometer at Two Guns reported a peak wind gust of 70 MPH. A wind sensor on the edge of Meteor Crater reported sustained winds of 60-70 MPH with a gust to 111 MPH. This location is not representative of the conditions away from the crater rim.
The ASOS at the Winslow Airport reported a peak wind gust of 62 MPH. The winds gusted over 58 MPH for over an hour.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Arizona in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Arizona, November 2012
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: 414373, 414379, 413964.