FAQ 4
Monsoon Season in Arizona
Black Mesa AZ
In my novel Murder@ the Black Mesa Cafe
Michael Doyle and Vincent Steven save a boy trapped in a flooded wash.
I start my mornings with a cup of coffee and the Weather Channel. Today I am following (potential hurricane) tropical storm Harvey which is gathering moisture from the Gulf of Mexico with possible 11" of rain in one day over parts of Texas. From the estimated path it might keep going northwest or depending on the jet stream curve to the east. We'll see what's coming to Arizona.
A monsoon is a name given to a seasonal weather pattern in Arizona that changes from hot and dry (110 degrees+ F and less than 20% humidity) to humid (dew points in the 70's) and downpours of rain (5" to 6 " in one day). Dry washes and riverbeds fill up in seconds with a wall of water and debris.
The average rainfall in Arizona is about 12" a year, happening twice a year, once in the Winter months of February/March and next the Summer Monsoon season in July/August. The year 1980 after I moved to Arizona so much rain fell during the winter that the bridges along the Salt River collapsed. The only bridge crossing left from the south to the north was an old WPA bridge over Mill Avenue connecting Tempe to Scottsdale. Luckily I worked for the Mesa Tribune newspaper and lived a few blocks away so I could walk to work.
Also when I lived in Apache Junction, I was headed home, past the Central Arizona Canal where it crosses Apache Trail. The road was dry, from the time the light turned green, I drove my car past the canal. A storm had swollen the banks and water rushed down the Salt River. Within a short time, a minute or so the canal overran its banks and flooded the highway. I felt the water grab my back wheels. I gunned the car and made it past just as water rushed over the highway.
This was before cell phones. I ran into the nearest store to call 911 to warn the County Sherrif's office what had happened. They immediately barricaded the Apache Trail. A video shows an example of how fast it happens. It doesn't have to be raining where you are, if there is a thunderstorm in the mountains the runoff will trap an unsuspecting motorist.
Click on the links below to see monsoon season in action.
http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2017/07/18/payson-flash-flood-wildfire-scars/486545001/
Any amount of substantial rain in Arizona can cause instant flash flooding in the washes and creeks. Don't ever camp or hike near a wash no matter what time of year. Especially don't drive through one. Don't underestimate the power of a flash flood. Many visitors have been injured or died from hiking or camping in a wash.
I start my mornings with a cup of coffee and the Weather Channel. Today I am following (potential hurricane) tropical storm Harvey which is gathering moisture from the Gulf of Mexico with possible 11" of rain in one day over parts of Texas. From the estimated path it might keep going northwest or depending on the jet stream curve to the east. We'll see what's coming to Arizona.
A monsoon is a name given to a seasonal weather pattern in Arizona that changes from hot and dry (110 degrees+ F and less than 20% humidity) to humid (dew points in the 70's) and downpours of rain (5" to 6 " in one day). Dry washes and riverbeds fill up in seconds with a wall of water and debris.
The average rainfall in Arizona is about 12" a year, happening twice a year, once in the Winter months of February/March and next the Summer Monsoon season in July/August. The year 1980 after I moved to Arizona so much rain fell during the winter that the bridges along the Salt River collapsed. The only bridge crossing left from the south to the north was an old WPA bridge over Mill Avenue connecting Tempe to Scottsdale. Luckily I worked for the Mesa Tribune newspaper and lived a few blocks away so I could walk to work.
Also when I lived in Apache Junction, I was headed home, past the Central Arizona Canal where it crosses Apache Trail. The road was dry, from the time the light turned green, I drove my car past the canal. A storm had swollen the banks and water rushed down the Salt River. Within a short time, a minute or so the canal overran its banks and flooded the highway. I felt the water grab my back wheels. I gunned the car and made it past just as water rushed over the highway.
This was before cell phones. I ran into the nearest store to call 911 to warn the County Sherrif's office what had happened. They immediately barricaded the Apache Trail. A video shows an example of how fast it happens. It doesn't have to be raining where you are, if there is a thunderstorm in the mountains the runoff will trap an unsuspecting motorist.
Click on the links below to see monsoon season in action.
This was before cell phones. I ran into the nearest store to call 911 to warn the County Sherrif's office what had happened. They immediately barricaded the Apache Trail. A video shows an example of how fast it happens. It doesn't have to be raining where you are, if there is a thunderstorm in the mountains the runoff will trap an unsuspecting motorist.
Click on the links below to see monsoon season in action.
http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2017/07/18/payson-flash-flood-wildfire-scars/486545001/
Any amount of substantial rain in Arizona can cause instant flash flooding in the washes and creeks. Don't ever camp or hike near a wash no matter what time of year. Especially don't drive through one. Don't underestimate the power of a flash flood. Many visitors have been injured or died from hiking or camping in a wash.
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