A strong cold front brought strong winds to northern Arizona on September 26, 2013.
Every event with a place to put it; 1 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 strong cold front brought strong winds to northern Arizona on September 26, 2013.
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 Sep 26, 11:40 AM MST, 1 hour 20 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ 1140 AM MST THU SEP 26 2013 .SYNOPSIS...A TROUGH OF LOW PRESSURE OVER THE WEST WILL BRING GUSTY WINDS THROUGH THIS EVENING AND BELOW NORMAL HIGH TEMPERATURES THROUGH SATURDAY. BELOW FREEZING LOW TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED FOR ELEVATIONS ABOVE 6500 FEET FOR MOST MORNINGS. SUNDAY THROUGH NEXT THURSDAY...A HIGH PRESSURE RIDGE WILL BUILD INTO THE SOUTHWEST BRINGING DRY CONDITIONS AND WARMING DAYTIME TEMPERATURES. HIGH TEMPERATURES ARE FORECAST TO RETURN TO SEASONAL VALUES. && .UPDATED DISCUSSION... ...HAVE MADE MINOR UPDATES TO THE WIND ADVISORY TO INCLUDE NORTHERN GILA COUNTY AND OAK CREEK/SYCAMORE CANYONS... A BROAD TROUGH OF LOW PRESSURE IS SITUATED ACROSS THE WESTERN U.S. WITH A COLD FRONT STRETCHED FROM SOUTHERN NV INTO SOUTHWEST UT THIS MORNING. NORTHERN AZ WILL REMAIN UNDER STRONG PRESSURE GRADIENTS AS THE FRONT APPROACHES TODAY WITH STRONG SOUTHWEST WINDS DEVELOPING AGAIN. WINDS IN THE HIGH TERRAIN ARE ALREADY GUSTING TO 30-40 MPH. THESE WINDS WILL BECOME WIDESPREAD IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF HOURS WITH GUSTS INCREASING TO 45-55 MPH. A FEW STRONGER GUSTS APPROACHING 55-60 MPH ARE POSSIBLE. LOWER ELEVATIONS EAST OF FLAGSTAFF MAY SEE SOME AREAS OF BLOWING DUST DEVELOP. WIND ADVISORIES REMAIN IN EFFECT FOR MOST OF NORTHERN AZ FROM LATE THIS MORNING THROUGH THIS EVENING. && .PREVIOUS DISCUSSION (325 AM MST)...THE WESTERN U.S. LOW PRESSURE TROUGH WILL COVER AN EXTENSIVE AREA OF THE INTERMOUNTAIN WEST AND IS FORECAST TO DROP SOUTH INTO OREGON...IDAHO...NEVADA AND UTAH TODAY. A DISTURBANCE ROTATING THROUGH THE BASE OF THE TROUGH IS FORECAST TO PUSH A COLD FRONT INTO NW AZ. THE COLD FRONT AND STRONG WINDS ALOFT WILL PRODUCE ANOTHER DAY OF STRONG SOUTHWEST WINDS WITH SPEEDS HIGHER THAN THEY WERE ON WEDNESDAY...MORE IN THE 25-35 MPH RANGE WITH GUSTS OF 45-55 MPH. A WIND ADVISORY WILL BE IN EFFECT FOR THE WHITE MOUNTAINS... MOGOLLON RIM...AND YAVAPAI COUNTY MOUNTAINS NORTHWARD TO THE UTAH BORDER FROM LATE MORNING INTO THE EARLY EVENING. THE COLD FRONT IS FORECAST TO TRACK SE ACROSS NORTHERN AZ THIS EVENING INTO FRIDAY MORNING. THERE MAYBE ENOUGH MOISTURE MAINLY OVER NAVAJO COUNTY AND UP ACROSS APACHE COUNTY FOR A FEW LIGHT SHOWERS OVERNIGHT TONIGHT. HIGH TEMPERATURES WILL RUN 6-8 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL TODAY THROUGH SATURDAY...AND FREEZING OVERNIGHT LOW TEMPERATURES WILL RETURN TO LOCATION ABOVE 6500 FEET. A FLAT RIDGE OF HIGH PRESSURE WILL BUILD BACK INTO THE REGION ON SUNDAY WITH WARMING CONDITIONS AND DRY WEATHER CONTINUING INTO THE SECOND HALF OF NEXT WEEK. HIGH TEMPERATURES ARE FORECAST TO WARM BACK UP TO SEASONAL AVERAGE VALUES. && .AVIATION...FOR THE 18Z PACKAGE...EXPECT VFR CONDITIONS WITH STRONG AND GUSTY SOUTHWEST WINDS TODAY. THE MAIN HAZARD TO AVIATION TODAY WILL BE FROM SUSTAINED SOUTHWEST WINDS OF 25 TO 35 MPH WITH GUSTS FROM 40 TO 55 MPH. AVIATION DISCUSSION NOT UPDATED FOR AMENDMENTS. && .FGZ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 8 PM MST THIS EVENING FOR AZZ004>018-038>040. && PUBLIC.........MCS/TC AVIATION.......KD FOR NORTHERN ARIZONA WEATHER INFORMATION VISIT WEATHER.GOV/FLAGSTAFF
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ 1139 AM MST THU SEP 26 2013 AZZ004>018-038>040-270915- 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-OAK CREEK AND SYCAMORE CANYONS- BLACK MESA AREA-NORTHEAST PLATEAUS AND MESAS SOUTH OF HWY 264- 1139 AM MST THU SEP 26 2013 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR APACHE...COCONINO... NORTHERN GILA...NAVAJO...AND YAVAPAI COUNTIES IN NORTHERN ARIZONA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT EXPECT WIDESPREAD STRONG SOUTHWEST WINDS TODAY AS A LOW PRESSURE TROUGH MOVES ACROSS THE GREAT BASIN. A WIND ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT TODAY FOR ALL OF NORTHERN ARIZONA EXCEPT THE LOWEST ELEVATIONS OF YAVAPAI COUNTY. SUSTAINED WINDS OF 25 TO 35 MPH WITH GUSTS FROM 45 TO 55 MPH ARE EXPECTED. AREAS OF BLOWING DUST AND SAND ARE EXPECTED ACROSS PORTIONS OF THE LITTLE COLORADO RIVER VALLEY AND CHINLE VALLEY. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY LOOK FOR BELOW FREEZING LOW TEMPERATURES ABOVE THE 6500 FOOT LEVEL THROUGH THE FORECAST PERIOD. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTERS SHOULD REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
The peak wind gust measured at the Flagstaff Airport ASOS was 64 MPH at 312 PM. The winds gusted above 50 MPH for several hours.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Arizona in 2013Every state in 2013This day in weather historyWarnings in Arizona, September 2013
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: 479621.