EF3 Tornado — Coconino, Arizona

2010-10-06 · near Kachina Village, Coconino, Arizona

Event narrative

This tornado caused extensive forest damage (primarily south of Bellemont), along a discontinuous track which extended from 15 miles south of Bellemont, eventually crossing Hwy 180 northwest of Flagstaff. The path of this tornado was parallel to, and approximately 1 mile west of Tornado #2. Very wide, severe and complete forest damage occurred in the forest south of Bellemont. Tornado visually sighted by NWS staff at the Bellemont Weather Forecast Office.

Tornado passed 1/3 mile west of the NWS Bellemont Weather Forecast office. Additional damage stats include:

-28 rail cars derailed in Bellemont.

-Semi trucks and trailers were overturned on I-40.

-Power poles and numerous trees snapped on Camp Navajo. Some structures damaged.

-Numerous forest roads blocked and campers were stranded by fallen trees.

Wider weather episode

A strong low pressure center over California pushed abundant moisture over Arizona producing widespread thunderstorms with numerous severe storms. Strong vertical wind shear...with helicity in the 400-450 range...also provided an environment for supercell development. There were eleven confirmed tornadoes on October 6, 2010 across northern Arizona (three of the tornadoes were within 2 miles of the NWS Forecast office). This breaks the old record for the most tornadoes in Arizona for one day. The Arizona Governor signed a declaration of emergency for Coconino Country for $200,000 to be used for emergency response and public infrastructure repair.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (35.0500, -111.8650)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 261973. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.