Dust Storm — Gila River Valley, Arizona

2022-06-25 · Gila River Valley, Arizona

Event narrative

Visibility of 1/4 mile in blowing dust from thunderstorm outflow on I-8 near Wellton. No accidents or injuries were reported.

Wider weather episode

Sufficient moisture combined with daytime heating resulted in moderate instability, especially across southwest Arizona with SPC mesoanalysis showing MLCAPE of 1000 J/KG and DCAPE of 2000 J/KG. This resulted in the development of strong to locally severe isolated thunderstorms across portions of Yuma and La Paz counties, with strong downburst winds and dense blowing dust being the main hazards. There was also a popular social media photo of a possible landspout tornado in the Buckeye area. No damages or injuries were reported.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1027977. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.