Arizona, 2014Drought in Arizona, April 22 to 30, 2014
April 22 to 30, 2014 · NWS TWC · 2 events in 2 counties and zones
Extreme drought conditions persisted in parts of southeast Arizona through April. Meager precipitation amounts caused the area of extreme (D3) drought to expand farther northward in Graham County and westward in Pinal County.
Every event with a place to put it; 2 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
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- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 2
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.
Extreme drought conditions persisted in parts of southeast Arizona through April. Meager precipitation amounts caused the area of extreme (D3) drought to expand farther northward in Graham County and westward in Pinal County.
What forecasters said that day
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 Apr 22, 9:30 AM MST, 30 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Apr 22, 9:30 AM MST, 30 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ
930 AM MST TUE APR 22 2014
.SYNOPSIS...BREEZY TO LOCALLY WINDY CONDITIONS AND SOME BLOWING DUST
WILL OCCUR THIS AFTERNOON AND WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON AS A LOW PRESSURE
SYSTEM MOVES NORTH OF THE AREA. EXPECT LESS WIND THURSDAY...THEN
WINDS WILL INCREASE FRIDAY AND BECOME STRONG AND GUSTY SATURDAY AS A
STRONGER SYSTEM MOVES ACROSS THE AREA. A FEW MAINLY MOUNTAIN SHOWERS
NORTHEAST OF TUCSON WILL BE POSSIBLE SATURDAY.
&&
.DISCUSSION...IR/VISIBLE SATELLITE IMAGERY AND SURFACE OBSERVATIONS
INDICATE MOSTLY SUNNY SKIES AT THIS TIME...WITH A FEW TO BKN MOSTLY
THIN CIRRIFORM CLOUDS ACROSS SE AZ. DEWPOINTS VALID 16Z RANGED FROM
THE MID 20S-MID 30S F...AND THESE TEMPS WERE ABOUT 2-5 DEGS F LOWER
VERSUS 24 HOURS AGO. SURFACE TEMPS VALID 16Z WERE NEARLY 3-8 DEGS F
WARMER VERSUS THIS TIME MON. 22/12Z KTWC SOUNDING DEPICTING A FAIRLY
DRY REGIME...WITH TOTAL PRECIP WATER VALUE NEAR 0.55 INCH. 22/12Z
UPPER AIR PLOTS INDICATED A RIDGE AXIS EXTENDING FROM THE TEXAS BIG
BEND NORTHWARD INTO THE NRN CONUS PLAINS...AND A TROUGH AXIS WAS
ESSENTIALLY ADJACENT THE WEST COAST. LIGHT-MODERATE SLY/SWLY FLOW
PREVAILED OVER SE AZ.
THE WEST COAST TROUGH WILL MOVE EWD INTO THE GREAT BASIN THIS
AFTERNOON...THEN CONTINUE EWD INTO THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN ROCKIES
WED AFTERNOON. A FAIRLY TIGHT MID-LEVEL GRADIENT WILL PROVIDE BREEZY
TO LOCALLY WINDY CONDITIONS THIS AFTERNOON AND EARLY THIS EVENING...
THEN AGAIN WED AFTERNOON. PATCHY BLOWING DUST MAY OCCUR THIS
AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING ACROSS MUCH OF SE AZ...AND PATCHY TO
AREAS OF BLOWING DUST MAY OCCUR WED AFTERNOON ESPECIALLY FROM TUCSON
EASTWARD TO THE NEW MEXICO BORDER. OTHERWISE...MOSTLY CLEAR SKIES TO
PARTLY CLOUDY SKIES WILL PREVAIL THRU TONIGHT...THEN MOSTLY SUNNY
SKIES WILL OCCUR WED.
SOMEWHAT LESS WIND SHOULD OCCUR THUR UNDER WLY FLOW ALOFT...THEN
FLOW ALOFT FRI WILL BECOME INCREASINGLY SWLY AS THE NEXT UPPER LEVEL
TROUGH APPROACHES THE WEST COAST. THE MID-LEVEL GRADIENT MAY SUPPORT
SOME BREEZY SWLY WINDS FRI. STRONGER WINDS WILL OCCUR SAT AS THE
UPPER TROUGH DIGS FURTHER SOUTHWARD ACROSS THE SWRN CONUS. AT THIS
TIME...APPEARS THIS SYSTEM STANDS THE BEST CHANCE TO ACHIEVE WIND
ADVISORY CRITERIA. DRY CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE SAT AND SAT NIGHT
EXCEPT FOR A SLIGHT CHANCE OF SHOWERS ACROSS THE WHITE MOUNTAINS.
THE UPPER TROUGH WILL MOVE EWD INTO THE CENTRAL CONUS PLAINS SUN. A
FAIRLY TIGHT MID-LEVEL GRADIENT WILL SUPPORT GUSTY NWLY WINDS SUN
AFTERNOON...PARTICULARLY IN THE UPPER GILA RIVER VALLEY INCLUDING
SAFFORD. DRY CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE MON UNDER NWLY FLOW ALOFT.
HIGH TEMPS THIS AFTERNOON WILL BE NEARLY IDENTICAL TO TEMPS ACHIEVED
MON. COOLER TEMPS WILL THEN OCCUR WED FOLLOWED BY A SLIGHT WARMING
TREND THUR-FRI. EXPECT COOLER TEMPS THIS WEEKEND AS THE STRONGER
UPPER TROUGH MOVES ACROSS THE AREA...THEN HIGH TEMPS NEXT MON ARE
FORECAST TO RETURN CLOSE TO SEASONAL NORMALS.
&&
.AVIATION...VALID THRU 24/18Z.
A TROUGH OF LOW PRESSURE NEAR THE CALIFORNIA COAST WILL MOVE
EASTWARD ACROSS ARIZONA WEDNESDAY. THE MAIN IMPACT FROM THIS SYSTEM
THRU WEDNESDAY MORNING WILL BE GUSTY SWLY WINDS. SURFACE WIND THIS
AFTERNOON AND EARLY THIS EVENING WILL BE SWLY AT 12-20 KTS WITH
GUSTS OF 25-30 KTS. SURFACE WIND WILL THEN DIMINISH TO LESS THAN 10
KTS ACROSS MUCH OF SE AZ AROUND 23/04Z - 23/06Z AND CONTINUE INTO
WED MORNING. OTHERWISE...EXPECT FEW TO OCCASIONALLY BKN CLOUDS ABOVE
20K FT AGL THRU WEDNESDAY MORNING. AVIATION DISCUSSION NOT UPDATED
FOR TAF AMENDMENTS.
&&
.FIRE WEATHER...A TROUGH OF LOW PRESSURE NEAR THE CALIFORNIA COAST
WILL MOVE EASTWARD ACROSS ARIZONA WEDNESDAY. THIS SYSTEM WILL BRING
GUSTY SOUTHWEST WINDS TO MUCH OF THE AREA THIS AFTERNOON AND EARLY
THIS EVENING...THEN GUSTY WEST WINDS WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON AND
WEDNESDAY EVENING. SUSTAINED 20 FOOT WINDS WILL GENERALLY BE 10-20
MPH THIS AFTERNOON AND AGAIN WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON. A VERY DRY SURFACE
REGIME WILL PREVAIL WITH MINIMUM RELATIVE HUMIDITY VALUES RANGING
FROM THE UPPER SINGLE DIGITS TO THE TEENS. A FIRE WEATHER WATCH
REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH WEDNESDAY EVENING
FOR ABOUT THE EASTERN HALF OF COCHISE COUNTY...SOUTHERN GRAHAM
COUNTY AND MUCH OF GREENLEE COUNTY. THIS WATCH DOES NOT INCLUDE THE
ALPINE DISTRICT. AT THIS TIME...CONFIDENCE IS LOW THAT THIS WATCH
WILL BE UPGRADED TO A RED FLAG WARNING.
SOMEWHAT LESS WIND WILL OCCUR THURSDAY...THEN WINDS WILL INCREASE
AGAIN FRIDAY AND BECOME STRONG AND GUSTY SATURDAY AS ANOTHER LOW
PRESSURE TROUGH MOVES ACROSS THE AREA. THERE APPEARS TO BE AN
INCREASED LIKELIHOOD OF WIDESPREAD CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
SATURDAY AFTERNOON AND SATURDAY EVENING ASSOCIATED WITH THIS SYSTEM.
A FEW SHOWERS MAY OCCUR SATURDAY IN THE WHITE MOUNTAINS BUT DRY
CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE ELSEWHERE. THERE WILL STILL BE SOME
BREEZINESS SUNDAY...THEN LESS WIND SHOULD OCCUR MONDAY AS HIGH
PRESSURE BUILDS OVER THE AREA.
&&
.TWC WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...FIRE WEATHER WATCH FROM WEDNESDAY
AFTERNOON THROUGH WEDNESDAY EVENING FOR AZZ152-153.
&&
VISIT US ON FACEBOOK...TWITTER...YOUTUBE...AND AT WEATHER.GOV/TUCSON
FRANCISDrought, South Central Pinal County
- When
- April 22, 10:00 AM MST to April 30, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- South Central Pinal County forecast zone
- Reported by
- Drought Monitor
- Coordinates
- 32.904, -111.345 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Extreme drought (D3) category persisted and actually expanded slightly in eastern Pinal, western Graham, extreme northeastern Pima and much of northern Cochise counties through April. Two meager precipitation events occurred on the 19th and 26th of the month but only managed to produce between 10 and 50 percent of the monthly average rainfall in the majority of the drought area. These two light rain events did produce lightning strikes that sparked a number of wildfires, including the Skunk Fire in northwest Graham County. Soil moisture conditions were generally less than 20 percent of normal and San Carlos Reservoir was at less than 9 percent of capacity.
Drought, White Mountains of Graham and Greenlee Counties
- When
- April 22, 10:00 AM MST to April 30, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- White Mountains of Graham and Greenlee Counties forecast zone
- Reported by
- Drought Monitor
- Coordinates
- 33.074, -109.563 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Extreme drought (D3) category persisted and actually expanded slightly in eastern Pinal, western Graham, extreme northeastern Pima and much of northern Cochise counties through April. Two meager precipitation events occurred on the 19th and 26th of the month but only managed to produce between 10 and 50 percent of the monthly average rainfall in the majority of the drought area. These two light rain events did produce lightning strikes that sparked a number of wildfires, including the Skunk Fire in northwest Graham County. Soil moisture conditions were generally less than 20 percent of normal and San Carlos Reservoir was at less than 9 percent of capacity.
- Drought
- A drought reaching severe (D2) or worse on the US Drought Monitor, or with notable impacts.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
- High Wind in Utah, April 22, 20141 injured · $925,000 · 75 kt wind · 9 events
- Wildfire and High Wind in Nevada, April 22 to 23, 2014$50,000 · 69 kt wind · 3 events
- Damaging Winds and High Wind in Idaho, April 22, 2014$14,000 · 56 kt wind · 4 events
- Heavy Snow and High Wind in Montana, April 22 to 24, 201452 kt wind · 6 events
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Pennsylvania, April 22, 20141 in hail · 5 events
- High Wind in Nevada, April 22, 201461 kt wind · 3 events
- High Wind in California, April 22, 201469 kt wind · 2 events
- Damaging Winds in Pennsylvania, April 22, 2014$3,000 · 50 kt wind · 2 events
- Damaging Winds in Maryland, April 22, 2014$500 · 52 kt wind · 2 events
- High Wind in Wyoming, April 22, 201459 kt wind · 2 events
- Strong Wind in Nevada, April 22, 2014$2,000 · 1 event
- Heavy Snow in Washington, April 22 to 23, 20141 event
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: 514486, 514487.