Flash Flood — La Paz, Arizona

2022-08-19 · near Salome, La Paz, Arizona

Event narrative

A video showed a wash flowing across a low water crossing south of Salome on Harquahala Road, making the roadway impassable. No damage or injuries were reported.

Wider weather episode

Thunderstorms on the 19th initiated across southeast Arizona and along the Mogollon Rim during the late morning/early afternoon hours before pushing into the lower elevations of south-central Arizona. A couple of upper level features, which included an area of low pressure over northern Sonora and a shortwave trough over the Great Basin, aided in ascent over the region in an environment characterized by high instability (MUCAPE 2,000 J/kg) and anomalously high moisture (PWATs 1.8-2.2). Given the moisture in place, thunderstorms were able to become efficient rainfall producers, leading to multiple reports of flash flooding across the area. No injuries were reported.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (33.7280, -113.5995)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1054298. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.