High Wind — Little Colorado River Valley in Navajo County, Arizona

2023-02-14 · Little Colorado River Valley in Navajo County, Arizona

Event narrative

The Winslow Airport reported sustained winds of 40 MPH or higher from 100 PM to around 330 PM, wind gusts of 58 MPH or higher from around 115 PM until around 300 PM, and a peak wind gust of 63 MPH at 219 PM. Blowing dust reduced the visibility at times to less than 3 miles between 100 PM and 230 PM. The ADOT sensors on I-40 at the Little Colorado River had a peak wind gust of 62 MPH at 213 PM and the one on I-40 at Jack Rabbit had a peak wind gust of 62 MPH at 323 PM.

Wider weather episode

A strong longwave trough digging through The Great Basin brought more moisture to Arizona in addition to the remnant moisture from a weak storm that just move across the state. This allowed for precipitation to start the morning of February 14 across the favored upslope-forced areas along the southward facing terrain.

During the afternoon of 14 February, an intense band of heavy precipitation moved across northern Arizona and lasted through the night. Snowfall rates of 1-2 inch/hour were seen over the higher terrain, especially from Flagstaff to Happy Jack to Forest Lakes.

Very cold temperatures were also observed with this storm with snow levels down to around 3500 feet by the morning of 15 February.

High winds were also experienced with this storm.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1079960. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.