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

2024-05-05 · Little Colorado River Valley in Coconino County, Arizona

Event narrative

The peak wind gust at the Winslow Airport was 64 MPH at 506 PM. Wind gust of 58 MPH or higher occurred between 150 PM and 510 PM. The KINW airport is less than ten miles into the next county. The peak wind gust at Two Guns (ADOT sensor) along I-40 was 73 MPH at 603 PM. Wind gusts were 58 MPH or higher from around 200 PM to 700 PM.

Wider weather episode

A deep upper level low moved across The Great Basin and through Arizona. This system was anomalously strong for the time of year and is quite cold aloft. The pressure gradient tightened up and resulted in extremely gusty and strong winds. While most areas experienced wind gusts around 40-50 MPH with some areas had gusts of 55-65 MPH. The highest gusts were downwind of the higher terrain.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1182904. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.