A mid-level trough continued to approach the area from the west. 12z precipitable water from the KTUS sounding was down to just over 1 inch, likely due to significant mid and upper-level drying.
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 TWC wrote it up.
A mid-level trough continued to approach the area from the west. 12z precipitable water from the KTUS sounding was down to just over 1 inch, likely due to significant mid and upper-level drying. Winds veered from SSW at the surface to NE at 700 mb. Storms initially generated over the terrain with some moving off to the east and northeast over valley locations.
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 Aug 20, 8:30 AM MST, 4 hours 45 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ 830 AM MST WED AUG 20 2014 .SYNOPSIS...SCATTERED MAINLY AFTERNOON AND EVENING THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH FRIDAY WITH SOME STORMS PRODUCING HEAVY RAIN AND GUSTY WINDS. GRADUAL DRYING IS EXPECTED TO OCCUR THIS WEEKEND INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK...HOWEVER ENOUGH MOISTURE WILL REMAIN FOR ISOLATED TO SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS. BELOW NORMAL DAYTIME TEMPERATURES WILL PREVAIL THROUGH FRIDAY FOLLOWED BY A WARMING TREND THIS WEEKEND. && .DISCUSSION...OTHER THAN A FEW PATCHES OF CLOUDS FAR EASTERN SECTIONS SKIES ARE CLEAR THIS MORNING. THE SOUNDING THIS MORNING SHOWS A SIGNIFICANTLY DRIER MID AND UPPER LEVEL ATMOSPHERE BUT STILL RATHER UNSTABLE THANKS TO PLENTY OF LOW LEVEL MOISTURE. THE LOW LEVEL MOISTURE WILL MIX OUT TO SOME EXTENT BUT SHOULD BE ENOUGH FOR A FEW THUNDERSTORMS TO DEVELOP OVER THE HIGHER TERRAIN TODAY. CU ALREADY SHOWING UP OVER THE HUACHUCA MTNS ALREADY. ANY STORMS THAT DEVELOP WILL MOVE OFF TO THE NORTHEAST AND BE YOUR MORE TYPICAL RAIN AND WIND PRODUCERS RATHER THAN THE HEAVY RAINERS OF LATE. AS FAR AS HIGH TEMPERATURES...WILL HAVE RELATIVELY LOW THICKNESS VALUES ACROSS THE REGION WHICH WILL HOLD HI TEMPS A FEW DEGREES COOLER THAN NORMAL. THE WESTERN DESERTS WILL HAVE SIMILAR TEMPS TO YESTERDAY WHILE AREAS EAST OF TUCSON...WHILE STILL COOLER THAN NORMAL WILL BE UP TO 10 DEGREES WARMER THAN YESTERDAY THANKS TO MORE SUNSHINE. NO UPDATES NEEDED AT THIS TIME. CERNIGLIA THE REMAINDER OF THIS SECTION IS FROM THE PRECIOUS DISCUSSION. TONIGHT...MODEL CROSS SECTIONS INDICATE THAT A BIT MORE MID-LEVEL MOISTURE WILL BE PULLED FROM THE OUTER EDGE OF TS LOWELL INTO SW AZ AS THE CLOSED LOW OFF THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA COAST SLOWLY MOVES INLAND OVER SAN DIEGO. COULD SEE A FEW STORMS DEVELOP OVER OUR WESTERN DESERTS LATE TONIGHT INTO THURSDAY MORNING. THURSDAY LOOKS RATHER ACTIVE AS THE CLOSED LOW OPENS UP AS IT MOVES INTO WESTERN ARIZONA. THUS EXPECT A RETURN TO SCATTERED AFTERNOON AND EVENING SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. HIGHS SIMILAR TO WHAT IS FORECAST FOR TODAY WHICH CONTINUES TO BE BELOW NORMAL. FRIDAY...TROF AXIS WILL BE MOVING INTO WESTERN NEW MEXICO WITH DRIER AIR FILTERING ACROSS THE AREA FROM THE WEST. PRECIPITABLE WATER VALUES ARE PROGGED TO BE LESS THAN ONE INCH IN THE WHITES TO NEAR 1.50" ALONG THE INTNL BORDER. THIS WILL LIMIT THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY TO THE MOUNTAINS EAST OF TUCSON AND ALONG THE INTERNATIONAL BORDER FROM NOGALES EAST. BELOW NORMAL HIGHS CONTINUE FOR ONE MORE DAY. SATURDAY...THE PACIFIC UPPER TROF THAT KICKS OUR CURRENT LOW THRU THE STATE ON FRIDAY WILL BE PASSING BY TO OUR NORTH. RATHER DRY WESTERLY FLOW ALOFT WITH PRECIPITABLE WATER VALUES PROGGED TO RANGE FROM 0.75"-1.25" DRIEST IN THE WHITES. THUNDERSTORM COVERAGE LESS THAN FRIDAY BUT PRETTY MUCH IN THE SAME AREAS. WARMER WITH HIGHS EDGING CLOSER TO NORMAL. SUNDAY...TROFINESS REMAINING TO OUR NORTH WILL LIMIT ANY THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY TO MAINLY THE HIGHER TERRAIN E AND S OF TUCSON. HIGHS WILL BE AT OR SLIGHTLY ABOVE NORMAL. MONDAY AND TUESDAY...WILL MAINTAIN LOW GRADE MONSOON FORECAST AS UPPER LEVEL TROFINESS REMAINS CLOSE TO THE STATE. DEEPER MOISTURE MAY RETURN TO THE AREA THANKS TO A TROPICAL SYSTEM MOVING CLOSE ENOUGH TO THE GULF OF CA TO SEND A SURGE OF MOISTURE NORTH INTO THE STATE. TIME WILL TELL. && .AVIATION...VALID THRU 21/18Z. EXPECT ISOLATED TO SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON...PERSISTING INTO THE EARLY EVENING HOURS. THESE WILL MAINLY HUG THE MOUNTAINS WITH THE KOLS AND KDUG TERMINALS MOST LIKELY TO BE AFFECTED. KTUS WILL LIKELY NOT HAVE ANY THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY TODAY. MVFR VISIBILITIES AND WIND GUSTS TO 45 KTS WILL OCCUR WITH THE STRONGER TSRA. A FEW CLOUDS-SKC CONDITIONS EXPECTED THRU MID MORNING WEST OF A KOLS TO KCGZ LINE...WITH SCT-BKN CLOUDS AT 8-14K FT AGL EAST OF THIS LINE. SCT-BKN CLOUDS AREAWIDE THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING AT 6-11K FT AGL...SLOWLY DIMINISHING AFT 21/04Z TONIGHT. OUTSIDE OF THUNDERSTORM OUTFLOWS...SURFACE WIND WILL GENERALLY BE LESS THAN 10 KTS. AVIATION DISCUSSION NOT UPDATED FOR TAF AMENDMENTS. && .FIRE WEATHER...ISOLATED TO SCATTERED MAINLY AFTERNOON AND EVENING THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED THROUGH EARLY NEXT WEEK. OVERALL THROUGH THE WEEKEND THERE WILL BE LESS ACTIVITY THAN WE HAVE HAD OVER THE LAST WEEK AND THE STORMS WILL NOT BE AS HEAVY WITH RESPECT TO RAIN. THAT SAID...ANY STRONGER THUNDERSTORMS WILL PRODUCE STRONG...GUSTY AND ERRATIC WINDS. OUTSIDE OF THE THUNDERSTORM OUTFLOWS...20-FOOT WINDS WILL EXHIBIT NORMAL DIURNAL TRENDS AND WILL BE MOSTLY LESS THAN 15 MPH. && VISIT US ON FACEBOOK...TWITTER...YOUTUBE...AND AT WEATHER.GOV/TUCSON
The Tucson radar (KEMX), 38 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:15 UTC.
1 funnel cloud. Local standard time, as filed.
A high based, short-lived funnel cloud was seen over Babocamari Ranch around 1315 LST. Photo was received from the public via local media. The captain at the Sierra Vista Fire Department confirmed the funnel never touched the ground.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Arizona in 2014Every state in 2014This day in weather historyWarnings in Arizona, August 2014
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: 540014.