High Wind — Grand Flat and Arches, Utah

2025-05-13 · Grand Flat and Arches, Utah

Event narrative

The peak gust to 59 mph occurred at the Bryson Canyon RAWS at 2:48 PM MDT. Gusts across the region ranged from 45 mph up to the peak of 59, with the KCNY ASOS recording a gust to 49 mph, and other RAWS in the region recording gusts to the low to mid 50s mph. No reports of injuries, damages, or fatalities were received.

Wider weather episode

A strong low pressure system moving into the Pacific Northwest led to the upper level pressure gradient to begin tightening over the eastern Great Basin, leading to increasing winds aloft. At the same time, high pressure still in place over eastern Utah and western Colorado helped promote deep daytime mixing that allowed those strong upper level winds to mix down to the surface. This resulted in widespread wind gusts of 40-50 mph, with gusts upwards of 60 mph in some locations.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1265758. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.