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EF3 Tornado — Coconino, Arizona

2010-10-06 · near Moenkopi, Coconino, Arizona

$200K

Property damage

4.0 mi

Path length

1100 yds

Path width

Event narrative

A tornado collapsed three 500 KV electrical transmission towers. The towers were of metal truss construction. One tower was completely flattened. Photographic evidence and first-hand reports were provided by Arizona Public Service. Tornado damage intensity is rated at EF-3. Damage path length indeterminable.

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 → (35.9090, -111.0050)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 261977. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.