The monsoon moisture in place at the end of July carried over into August, producing widespread showers and thunderstorms across Utah. The heaviest rain fell over southern Utah, where a few different flash floods were observed on August 1st.
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 SLC wrote it up.
The monsoon moisture in place at the end of July carried over into August, producing widespread showers and thunderstorms across Utah. The heaviest rain fell over southern Utah, where a few different flash floods were observed on August 1st.
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 Salt Lake City, UT wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 1, 8:31 AM MST, 5 hours 39 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SALT LAKE CITY UT
931 AM MDT WED AUG 1 2012
.SYNOPSIS...A DRYING TREND IS EXPECTED ACROSS NORTHERN UTAH
BEGINNING TODAY WHILE MOISTURE LINGERS ACROSS THE FAR SOUTH
THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF THE WEEK.
&&
.DISCUSSION...PARTLY CLOUDY TO MOSTLY CLOUDY SKIES EXIST OVER MUCH
OF THE FORECAST AREA THIS MORNING...AS A MOIST AIRMASS REMAINS IN
PLACE. DRIER AIR WILL BEGIN MOVING INTO THE NORTHWEST PORTIONS OF
UTAH THROUGH TODAY...PARTICULARLY IN THE MID-LEVELS OF THE
ATMOSPHERE...AS A SHORTWAVE SLIDES NORTH OF THE AREA.
IN SOUTHERN UTAH...HEAVY RAIN WILL ONCE AGAIN BE POSSIBLE THIS
AFTERNOON...WITH PRECIPITABLE WATER VALUES GENERALLY 1.1 TO 1.5
INCHES STILL IN PLACE OVER THE SOUTHERN HALF OF THE STATE.
CONVECTIVE INITIATION MAY BE SLIGHTLY LATER THAN YESTERDAY...WITH
THE AMPLE AMOUNT OF CLOUD COVER IN PLACE IN THE SOUTH...BUT SOME
SCATTERING OF THIS CLOUD DECK HAS ALREADY BEEN OBSERVED AS OF
1530Z. THE FLASH FLOOD WATCH LOOKS GOOD...AND WITH NORTHERLY FLOW
SETTLING OVER THE AREA...WILL HAVE TO WATCH THE POSSIBILITY OF
CELLS FORMING OVER THE SOUTHERN MOUNTAINS AND DRIFTING INTO FLASH
FLOOD PRONE BASINS SUCH AS ZION NATIONAL PARK.
THE FORECAST FOR TODAY LOOKS GOOD AND NO UPDATES ARE PLANNED FOR
THIS MORNING.
&&
.AVIATION...SURFACE WINDS AT THE SLC TERMINAL ARE EXPECTED TO
SWITCH TO THE NORTHWEST BETWEEN 19Z AND 21Z...WITH A SLIGHT CHANCE
THAT SOUTHERLIES REMAIN IN PLACE THROUGH 22Z. THERE IS ALSO A 20
PERCENT CHANCE THAT A THUNDERSTORM WILL IMPACT THE TERMINAL THIS
AFTERNOON...WITH GUSTY ERRATIC WINDS BEING MOST LIKELY.
&&
.FIRE WEATHER...DEEP MOISTURE WILL REMAIN ACROSS MOST OF
UTAH...RESULTING IN ANOTHER DAY OF AFTERNOON SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS. HEAVY RAIN IS EXPECTED WITH ANY STORMS THAT DEVELOP.
DRIER AIR WILL BEGIN TO MAKE ITS WAY INTO THE NORTHWEST CORNER OF
THE STATE THIS EVENING...MAKING ITS WAY SOUTH OVERNIGHT. A DRYING
TREND WILL CONTINUE THROUGH FRIDAY...WITH A CORRESPONDING DOWNWARD
TREND IN CONVECTION. ACROSS NORTHERN UTAH...WINDS WILL BEGIN TO PICK
UP TOMORROW AFTERNOON...BECOMING GUSTY IN PRONE AREAS. WITH LOW
HUMIDITIES AND INCREASED WINDS IT IS POSSIBLE THAT ISOLATED
LOCATIONS IN NORTHERN UTAH MAY REACH CRITICAL LEVELS...BUT GUSTY
WINDS ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BE WIDESPREAD. MODELS SUGGEST THAT
MONSOONAL MOISTURE WILL SPREAD BACK INTO THE STATE FROM THE SOUTH
BEGINNING SATURDAY.
&&
.SLC WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
UT...FLASH FLOOD WATCH THROUGH THIS EVENING FOR
UTZ013-019>021-517-518.
WY...&&
SCHOENING/HOSENFELD
FOR MORE INFORMATION FROM NOAA/S NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE VISIT...
HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/SALTLAKECITY (ALL LOWER CASE)
FOR FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT THE AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
VISIT...
HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/SALTLAKECITY/GENERAL/AFD_FAQS.PHP (ALL LOWER CASE)HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...CORRECTED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SALT LAKE CITY UT 1027 AM MDT WED AUG 1 2012 UTZ001>016-019>021-517-518-WYZ021-021200- CACHE VALLEY/UTAH PORTION-NORTHERN WASATCH FRONT- SALT LAKE AND TOOELE VALLEYS-SOUTHERN WASATCH FRONT- GREAT SALT LAKE DESERT AND MOUNTAINS-WASATCH MOUNTAIN VALLEYS- WASATCH MOUNTAINS I-80 NORTH-WASATCH MOUNTAINS SOUTH OF I-80- WESTERN UINTA MOUNTAINS-WASATCH PLATEAU/BOOK CLIFFS- WESTERN UINTA BASIN-CASTLE COUNTRY-SAN RAFAEL SWELL- SANPETE/SEVIER VALLEYS-WEST CENTRAL UTAH-SOUTHWEST UTAH- UTAHS DIXIE AND ZION NATIONAL PARK-SOUTH CENTRAL UTAH- GLEN CANYON RECREATION AREA/LAKE POWELL-CENTRAL MOUNTAINS- SOUTHERN MOUNTAINS-SOUTHWEST WYOMING- 244 AM MDT WED AUG 1 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE WESTERN TWO THIRDS OF UTAH AND SOUTHWEST WYOMING. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A FLASH FLOOD WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR PORTIONS OF THE OUTLOOK AREA THROUGH THIS EVENING. THUNDERSTORMS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING HEAVY RAIN IN ADDITION TO DANGEROUS CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING CAN BE EXPECTED ACROSS PORTIONS OF SOUTHERN UTAH THROUGH THIS EVENING. THIS HEAVY RAINFALL MAY RESULT IN FLASH FLOODING...PARTICULARLY WITHIN SLOT CANYONS...SMALL STREAMS AND NORMALLY DRY WASHES. ISOLATED TO SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS CAN BE EXPECTED ACROSS NORTHERN AND CENTRAL UTAH THROUGH THIS EVENING...WHERE STRONG GUSTY WINDS...LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN...AND DANGEROUS CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING WILL BE POSSIBLE. THESE STORMS MAY PRODUCE DEBRIS FLOWS FROM RECENT BURN SCARS RESULTING FROM THE QUAIL...SEELEY...WOOD HOLLOW AND CLAY SPRINGS FIRES. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY A DRYING TREND IS EXPECTED ACROSS NORTHERN UTAH DURING THE LATTER PORTION OF THE WEEK...WHILE MOISTURE REMAINS IN PLACE ACROSS THE FAR SOUTH BRINGING A CONTINUED THREAT FOR SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. SOME OF THESE STORMS MAY PRODUCE LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. FOR MORE INFORMATION FROM NOAA/S NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE VISIT... HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/SALTLAKECITY (ALL LOWER CASE) FOR INFORMATION ON POTENTIAL TRAVEL IMPACTS VISIT... HTTP://WWW.UDOTTRAFFIC.UTAH.GOV/ROADWEATHERFORECAST.ASPX
The Cedar City radar (KICX), 111 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 21:11 UTC.
5 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Flash flooding was reported along the Escalante River, where it runs adjacent to State Route 12. Some water crossed over the road west of the city of Escalante.
A large flash flood was reported along the Paria River, with water flowing over the Skudampah Road.
Multiple flash floods were reported in the upper Kanab Creek drainage.
After approximately 1.25 inches of rainfall, a very large debris flow occurred on the Seeley Burn Scar. Debris flowed over State Route 31, causing significant damage to a 1/4 mile stretch of the road, as well as a nearby bridge. Debris of up to 3 feet in height was spread over about a mile of the roadway. State Route 31 was closed for over a week, as crews repaired the road damage and cleared boulders and other debris off the roadway. The debris flow also pushed a UDOT front loader off the road and into a ditch, partially covering it with debris.
Flash flooding occurred along La Verkin Creek on the evening of August 1st, with significant rises in the water level. At the same time, a 2-year-old girl was noticed missing from her home in the city of La Verkin, which was close to the creek. The girl passed away when she drowned in the Creek, and her body was found a couple hours after she had been reported missing.
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood, Washington | 2012-08-01 | 2 | Female | In Water | Direct |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Utah in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Utah, August 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: 411151, 411153, 411154, 411163, 411159.