A gust front from a thunderstorm interacted with another thunderstorm updraft to create a vortex that caused property damage.
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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 gust front from a thunderstorm interacted with another thunderstorm updraft to create a vortex that caused property damage.
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 Jun 20, 3:39 PM MST, 1 hour 1 minute earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Flagstaff AZ 339 PM MST MON JUN 20 2016 .SYNOPSIS...Strong high pressure across northern Arizona will lead to very hot conditions on Tuesday. An increase in moisture is expected across northern Arizona. High based showers and thunderstorms are forecast over the mountain areas on Tuesday and Wednesday. Enough moisture will linger across east central Arizona on Thursday and Friday with chances for a few thunderstorms mainly each afternoon. && .DISCUSSION...A strong high pressure ridge will continue to produce hot afternoon temperatures on Tuesday. Temperatures will cool by several degrees each day as the ridge moves southeast and lower Pacific air moves into the state. Due to the lower temperature trends we removed the Excessive Heat Warning for Tuesday as the afternoon high temperatures will be lower than our warning impacts guidance permits. Temperatures on Tuesday will be hot enough for continued plume dominated fires and pyrocumulus development by the afternoon hours. Thunderstorm motion on Tuesday will be westward around 5 to 10 mph with outflow driven winds north of the Mogollon Rim. An upper level trough located in southwestern New Mexico will continue to move westward under the ridge axis causing southeasterly flow to advect higher moisture amounts up into Arizona. Expect isolated to scattered high based showers and thunderstorm each day through Wednesday. The main impacts will be additional lightning strikes initiating new fires and erratic gusty winds up to 40 mph near thunderstorms. On Thursday and Friday the ridge retreats southeastward and drier Pacific southwesterly flow moves into the region. This air moving into Arizona from the southwest will bring drier trends to the state as a mid latitude trough moves into the west coast. By Saturday and Sunday the high pressure ridge builds into the western states once again. Expect continued dry weather conditions with a return to hot afternoon temperature trends with light to breezy winds through the upcoming weekend. Confidence is strong in the return of hot and dry weather conditions on into the first half of next week. && .AVIATION...For the 00Z Package...Isolated showers and storms over the mountains of eastern Arizona through around 03Z, with a slight chance along the Mogollon Rim including the KFLG terminal. Gusty winds but little rainfall with showers/storms. Smoke downwind of area wildfires may impact visibility at times. The chance of afternoon showers and thunderstorms spreads northwestward Tuesday, including KGCN and KFLG terminals though probability is too low to include in TAFs. Aviation discussion not updated for TAF amendments. && .FIRE WEATHER...Isolated dry thunderstorms will continue across central and eastern Arizona through early this evening. The chance of high-based storms will spread northwest into much of the higher terrain on Tuesday and Wednesday. Erratic and gusty winds would likely accompany any showers or storms. Thursday through Friday...Daytime temperatures will remain well above normal. Enough moisture will continue to creep around the area for a chance of afternoon/evening storms Thursday, then mainly along the AZ/NM border Friday. && .FGZ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...Excessive Heat Warning until 8 PM MST this evening FOR AZZ006- 018-037. && PUBLIC...Bohlin AVIATION...JJ FIRE WEATHER...JJ For Northern Arizona weather information visit weather.gov/flagstaff
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ 354 PM MST MON JUN 20 2016 AZZ004>018-037>040-210700- 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- 354 PM MST MON JUN 20 2016 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR APACHE...COCONINO... NORTHERN GILA...NAVAJO...AND YAVAPAI COUNTIES IN NORTHERN ARIZONA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT HOT RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURES WILL CONTINUE FOR THE LATE AFTERNOON HOURS TODAY. THE EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNING WILL EXPIRE BY 8PM THIS EVENING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY AFTERNOON TEMPERATURES WILL DECREASE SEVERAL DEGREES ON TUESDAY AFTERNOON COMPARED TO MONDAY AS ADDITIONAL MOISTURE AND CLOUD COVER MOVING IN FROM THE SOUTH. ISOLATED TO SCATTERED AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING WITH HIGH BASED THUNDERSTORMS ARE FORECAST ACROSS NORTHERN ARIZONA THROUGH WEDNESDAY. ERRATIC GUSTY WINDS ARE POSSIBLE ALONG WITH NEW LIGHTNING CAUSED WILDFIRES. ON THURSDAY AND FRIDAY DRIER AIR MOVING IN FROM THE PACIFIC WILL CAUSE DIMINISHING CHANCES FOR THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY WITH LOW CHANCES FOR ISOLATED STORMS LINGERING IN THE WHITE MOUNTAINS REGION. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED.
The Flagstaff radar (KFSX), 105 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 23:39 UTC.
1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A confirmed gustnado was on the ground for approximately 4 minutes.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Arizona in 2016Every state in 2016This day in weather historyWarnings in Arizona, June 2016
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: 632511.