KOLD Climate Community Blog

Flooded Washes

I know we talk about it all the time, don't walk, play, or hike in washes. Thursday, July 3rd is a great example as to why we stress this. Heavy rain fell on the northern slope of the Catalina Mountains from about 4:30 PM until about 6 PM or so. This rain added up to nearly 1.5 inches in some spots. All of this water went into the Canada Del Oro wash (CDO). The CDO started to run, but only with a trickle. Than all at once, a rush of water came down the CDO...here is the graph of what happened to the water levels:

What you see here is the water level going from nearly zero to 6 feet within a matter of minutes! Two girls were swept up in this, and fortunately for them, they were rescued quickly. This spike in water levels is common with the type of thunderstorms we get here in Southern Arizona and this example should remind all of us how conditions can change in an instant. And just because it is not raining where you are, does not mean you won't see the effect of rain somewhere else!

-First Alert Meteorologist Aaron Pickering

Pre-Monsoon

Today was the first day the area has seen storms in a while. These storms were not over the Tucson metro area, but towns like Willcox, Sierra Vista, and Benson all saw these storms overhead. Intense heating of the lower levels of the atmosphere combined with moisture in the air caused the storms to form today. Southeastern Arizona did not see the worst of the storms.

Parts of southern New Mexico, between Las Cruces and El Paso, were under severe thunderstorm warnings today. Those storms brought damaging winds and a lot of rain to the area. In our viewing area, Cochise County went under a dust storm warning in the early evening. The Tucson Metro area also saw a dust storm warning at 7:30 PM which expired at 9 PM. The picture above, taken by Jinx Schwartz, is of the dust storm near Bisbee today. We can consider these storms a start to our pre-monsoon season. As intense heating will persist over the next week and upper level moisture is pushed into our area, we can expect to see more of these storms until the monsoon storms kick in.

I am sure most people are aware that it is "that time of the year." Once the dew point (amount of moisture in the air) begins to reach levels in the 40s and 50s, our chance of seeing daytime storms increases. Make sure you keep an eye out for these pop up thunderstorms because that time of the year has begun and thunderstorms will become more frequent.

Dustin Pittman - First Alert Intern

WINTER STORM WARNING until 3 AM Saturday

Good Friday morning!  This is a 1:30 PM update to the Winter Storm Warning.  A Winter Storm Warning is in effect until 3 am Saturday for areas above 3500 feet.  Check out the list below to find out what elevation you are at!  What a way to end the workweek.  Pima County from the Tohono O'ohdam Nation right into the Tucson metro area, southeast Pinal, Santa Cruz, Cochise, Graham, and Greenlee counties are all in the warning area. Below is the break down. 

• 2500' to 3500' up to an 1" of snow
• 3500' to 5000' - 3" to 6" of snow
• 5000 to 7000' - 6" to 14" of snow
• Above 7000' - 14" to 22" of snow

That being said, now here's a break down of elevations. 

PIMA COUNTY

• Tucson 2400'
• Marana 2055'
• Three Points 2339'
• Sells 2360'
• Oro Valley 2620'
• Green Valley 2900'
• Golder Ranch 3000'
• Catalina 3100'
• Vail 3225'

PINAL COUNTY

• Oracle 4500'

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY

• Tubac 3200'
• Nogales 3869'
• Sonoita 4970'

COCHISE COUNTY

• Douglas 3990'
• Willcox 4300'
• Tombstone 4540'
• Sierra Vista 4600'
• Dragoon 4615'
• Bisbee 5600'

GRAHAM COUNTY

• Safford 2954'

Send us your photos!  While Chuck, Aaron, and I are in the studio monitoring First Alert Doppler, you are our eyes in the field.   Check out our Viewer Views page.  Also leave a comment on this page and let us know how much snow you have on the ground. 

As temperatures drop below freezing at the surface tonight into Saturday morning, remember that any puddles or moisture on the roads will freeze.  Icy patches are possible from Tucson and upwards in elevation. The moisture on bridges and overpasses freeze first so be especially careful in those areas! 

Have a safe day! - First Alert Meteorologist Erin Jordan

Flooding This Monday Morning

Big rain overnight has washes running the morning.  Let me know what is going on in your backyard or what detours you had to take on your way to work.  And send us your Viewer Views! - First Alert Meteorologist Erin Jordan

High Wind Gusts This Morning

High winds across southeast Arizona knocked down power poles in Tucson this morning. Winds will lessen in strength tonight but there is the possibility of dust storms and more down power poles with high winds gusts throughout today.  Below is the high wind gusts recorded through 11am. - First Alert Meteorologist Erin Jordan 000 NOUS45 KTWC 221821 PNSTWC PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ 1120 AM MST MON OCT 22 2007 ...PEAK WIND REPORTS ACROSS SOUTHEAST ARIZONA THROUGH 11 AM... LOCATION                        PEAK WIND PIMA COUNTY... TUCSON INTL AIRPORT              30 MPH DAVIS-MONTHAN AFB                38 MPH SCOUT CAMP (FIRE WEATHER SITE)   46 MPH SAGUARO (FIRE WEATHER SITE)      34 MPH RINCON (FIRE WEATHER SITE)       50 MPH EMPIRE (FIRE WEATHER SITE)       29 MPH SASABE (FIRE WEATHER SITE)       27 MPH SOUTHEAST PINAL COUNTY... HORSE CAMP (FIRE WEATHER SITE)   40 MPH SANTA CRUZ COUNTY... HOPKINS (FIRE WEATHER SITE)      40 MPH COCHISE COUNTY... BISBEE-DOUGLAS AIRPORT           39 MPH FORT HUACHUCA                    33 MPH RUCKER (FIRE WEATHER SITE)       40 MPH MULESHOE (FIRE WEATHER SITE)     36 MPH HEADQUARTERS (FIRE WEATHER SITE) 36 MPH UPPER GILA RIVER VALLEY... GUTHRIE (FIRE WEATHER SITE)      39 MPH DRY LAKE (FIRE WEATHER SITE)     31 MPH BLACK HILLS (FIRE WEATHER SITE)  39 MPH GREENLEE COUNTY... STRAY HORSE (FIRE WEATHER SITE)  29 MPH

Weather Reports 9.17.07

A pulse of energy will move through Arizona today and tonight.  And with this muggy air mass in place, that means showers and thunderstorms!  So tell us what is going on in your backyard.  Just leave a comment on this blog entry.  We love photos!  Check out our Viewer Views.  We update the slideshow daily and it also tells you how to send us photos. 

Thanks! - The First Alert Weather Team

WEATHER REPORTS THURSDAY SEPT. 6TH

A thunderstorm was kicking up some dust in Why, Arizona on Wednesday afternoon.  Scattered storms flooded roads and raised water levels in washes across southeast Arizona.  There was even one water rescue in Cochise County. 

Today more showers and storms will moved across southeast Arizona.  The leftovers of Hurricane Henriette are bringing us this much needed rainfall.  Santa Cruz and Cochise Counties are under a Flash Flood Watch until 5pm Thursday afternoon. 

With storms forming across the area, the First Alert Meteorologists will be keeping a close eye on the radar.  While we are in the studio, you are our eyes and ears in the field.  So leave a comment on this blog telling us what is going on in your backyard.  Or if you have a question. Just ask it.  We will try to get back to you or another viewer may even be able to answer your question.  And we love photos!  Check out our Viewer Views for more information on how to get us the photos and take a look at our slideshow made up of photos viewers like you have submitted. 

Stay safe during the storms! - First Alert Meteorologist Erin Jordan

SEVERE WEATHER REPORTS WEDNESDAY 9.5.07

Hurricane Henriette makes it second landfall today on the northwest coast of mainland Mexico. Although it weakens considerably as it moves to the northeast over land, it will continue to send us tropical moisture.  This in turn increases our rain chances for the next couple of days.  Scattered storms will form across much of southeast Arizona today and tonight with the best chances of rain being along the international border and into southern New Mexico.  Cochise and Santa Cruz county are under a Flash Flood Watch from 5pm today to 5pm Thursday.  On Friday much of the moisture is pulled eastward along with the remaining weakened circulation.  Our rain then tapers off for the weekend.

As storms form tell us what's going on in your backyard!  While we are monitoring the storms on First Alert Doppler, you are our eyes and ears in the field.  Leave a comment on this blog to tell us what washes are running, how much rain you have gotten, and if you see hail or storm damage.  We also love to get photos!  Check out our Viewer Views to see our viewer photo slide show and learn how to get photos to us at KOLD. 

Have a good day and stay safe during these storms. - First Alert Meteorologist Erin Jordan

WEATHER REPORTS FRIDAY AUGUST 24

Feeling a little tropical out there today.  And that means the storms are popping!  Heavy downpours are the greatest danger but strong, damaging winds and small hail will also accompany some storms.  Tell us what is going on in your area.  We want to know how much rain fell, what washes are running, and where there is storm damage.  Just leave us a comment! Of course we always want your photos.  Check out Viewer Views.  That link will tell you how to get photos and we update the slide show daily. 

Thanks for logging on. - First Alert Meteorologist Erin Jordan

WEATHER REPORTS 8.20.07

Southern Arizona has opposite forces battling for control this afternoon.  High pressure overhead means storms are hard pressed to form.  High pressure results in sinking air, we need rising air (or low pressure) for storms to start popping. 

The offsetting factor today is the very warm, moist air we have at the surface. You can definitely feel the humidity has ramped up over the weekend!  We got a bit of a moisture surge for the Gulf of California. This humid air is very unstable. So during the heat of the day, little bubbles of air start rising.  And they may be able to overcome the high pressure aloft and build into storms. 

Storms will start developing over the mountains.  With little in the way of steering winds, these storms will likely rain themselves out.  That means isolated flooding is possible with washes running well downstream through the evening. 

As storms develop around you send us your photos!  Just check out Viewer Views.  We update the site daily with new photos but we haven't gotten many in recently.  So get out and take some photos...please!  Also tell us what is going on in your backyard.  We want to know what washes are running, if there is damage in your neighborhood, how much rain has poured down.  Just leave a comment on the blog.  We'll get it! 

Thanks for watching and logging on. - First Alert Meteorologist Erin Jordan