Arizona Severe Weather
One of the severe storm disasters on NOAA’s billion-dollar list: $5.5 billion in losses at 2024 prices ($3.8 billion at the time).
What the offices filed during it
The 23 most significant severe storm episodes filed in these dates, colored by kind.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Losses, 2024 dollars
- $5.5 billion
- Losses at the time
- $3.8 billion
- Deaths
- 0
The losses and deaths are NCEI’s, counting everything the disaster did. The episodes below are only what the Weather Service filed in its Storm Events record, which counts damage differently and often not at all, so the two never add up and are shown apart.
By state, as filed
| State | Events | Deaths | Injuries | Damage filed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona | 57 | 0 | 9 | $2.8 billion |
| Nevada | 5 | 0 | 0 | $1.0 million |
| California | 4 | 0 | 0 | $110,000 |
| Idaho | 4 | 0 | 0 | $25,000 |
| Utah | 15 | 0 | 2 | $20,000 |
| Puerto Rico | 24 | 0 | 0 | $10,000 |
| New Mexico | 3 | 0 | 0 | $5,000 |
| Connecticut | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
| Colorado | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
| Wyoming | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Episode by episode
- Damaging Wind in Idaho, October 3, 2010An upper low and the attendant cold front moved through the Intermountain region on the 3rd of the month, kicking off strong to isolated severe thunderstorms across parts of Southwest Idaho.
- Hail in Connecticut, October 4, 2010Low pressure offshore, in conjunction with a strong upper level low, produced isolated large hail producing thunderstorms across portions of southwest Connecticut.
- Flash Flooding in Arizona, October 4, 2010An upper level low pressure system dug all the way down to Baja California, bringing a very late season push of monsoon moisture which fueled thunderstorms in the Mojave Desert. Some storms produced flash flooding and severe weather.
- Hail in Arizona, October 4, 2010A strong low pressure system moving south over California produced large scale upward lift, deep moisture, and strong up-slope flow which lead to and scattered thunderstorms over northern Arizona.
- Flash Flooding and Damaging Wind in Nevada, October 4, 2010An upper level low pressure system dug all the way down to Baja California, bringing a very late season push of monsoon moisture which fueled thunderstorms in the Mojave Desert. Some storms produced flash flooding and severe weather.
- Damaging Winds in Arizona, October 4, 2010Scattered thunderstorms developed over portions of south central Arizona on the afternoon of October 4th. Some of the storms produced strong and damaging winds.
- Lightning Strike in Arizona, October 4, 2010Thunderstorms on the afternoon of October 4th produced lightning which damaged a home in the town of Mesa.
- Damaging Wind in New Mexico, October 4, 2010Easterly winds brought deep moisture into the region. A surface trough extending through the Rio Grande Valley provided the lift for strong to severe thunderstorms to develop.
- Tornado and Flash Flooding in Utah, October 5 to 7, 2010With a nearly stationary upper level low over California, large amounts of moisture spread into Utah.
- Flash Flood and Hail in Arizona, October 5, 2010An unusual series of severe storms with damaging winds and hail struck many portions of the Phoenix area during the afternoon and evening hours.
- Hail and Damaging Wind in Arizona, October 5, 2010A strong low pressure center over California continued to push abundant moisture over Arizona producing widespread showers and thunderstorms.
- Hail in California, October 5, 2010An upper level low pressure system dug all the way down to Baja California, bringing a very late season push of monsoon moisture which fueled thunderstorms in the Mojave Desert. Some storms produced flash flooding and severe weather.
- Damaging Wind in Arizona, October 5, 2010A strong low pressure system across southern California produced scattered showers and thunderstorms across much of Arizona during the afternoon and evening hours. Thunderstorms resulted in hail, high winds, and heavy rain.
- Hail in Arizona, October 6, 2010Fast moving strong thunderstorms during the early morning hours on October 6th produced large hail over parts of south central Arizona.
- Tornadoes and Hail in Arizona, October 6, 2010A strong low pressure center over California pushed abundant moisture over Arizona producing widespread thunderstorms with numerous severe storms. Strong vertical wind shear...with helicity in the 400-450 range...also provided an environment for supercell development.
- Hail in New Mexico, October 6, 2010Moisture and instability ahead of a potent short wave trough produced large hail around the Four Corners region.
- Flash Flooding and Debris Flows in Puerto Rico, October 6 to 9, 2010During the period from October 4-8, 2010, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico endured a period of persistent heavy rains that caused major flooding and landslides, leading to a declaration of a state of emergency by both the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rican governments.
- Flash Flood and Flood in California, October 6, 2010The stormy pattern from early October continued into the 6th and 7th of the month with more flooding and storms around the interior of Central California. On October 6th, the showers continued over the Sierra and much of the San Joaquin Valley, including the west side.
- Damaging Wind in Wyoming, October 6, 2010A strong thunderstorm moved across central Sweetwater County and produced a severe wind gust at the airport east of Rock Springs.
- Hail in Colorado, October 7, 2010Strong thunderstorms produced large hail in Montezuma County.
- Hail in New Mexico, October 7, 2010A short wave trough approaching New Mexico brought moisture and instability to the far northwest portion of the state, resulting in a report of large hail northeast of Farmington.
- Tornado in Idaho, October 7, 2010A closed storm circulation over the Great Basin combined with the upper level jet caused thunderstorms to form over north central Idaho. Enough shear was generated to produce a tornado on the Camas Prairie.
- Tornado in Idaho, October 7, 2010A tornado briefly touched down near the Lewis and Clearwater county line south of Craigmont. Local law enforcement relayed a message of a tornado witnessed by the public just south of New Hope Road near Lawyer Canyon. No damage was observed from the tornado.
More
Every billion-dollar disasterEvery storm of 2010Tornadoes in 2010
Sources
NOAA NCEI, U.S. Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters (2025), https://doi.org/10.25921/stkw-7w73, and the Storm Events Database for the episodes.