Winter Weather — Aguila Valley, Arizona

2021-01-25 · Aguila Valley, Arizona

Event narrative

A squall line/cold front associated with a cold weather system moved through south-central AZ in the early afternoon of the 25th. Immediately following the front, snow levels crashed rapidly down to as low as 1,500-2,000 feet. This led to a short period of light snow or graupel with light accumulations. A trained spotter in Wickenburg reported light snow accumulations at around 2,100 feet elevation. This event generated large public and media interest.

Wider weather episode

An abnormally strong and cold weather system impacted the Desert Southwest during late January. The storm produced significant snowfall for elevations above 3,500-4,000 feet over the course of the two days, mainly north and east of the Phoenix area. This led to the closures of US-60 between Globe and Show Low and SR-87 between Bush Highway and Payson. Following the passage of a cold front and squall line through south-central AZ, midday on the 25th, snow levels briefly crashed to as low as 1500-2000 feet. This resulted in light snow/graupel accumulations at these lower elevations which included the Wickenburg area and foothill regions just north and east of the Phoenix metro area. Mixed precipitation (rain, some snowflakes, graupel, and small hail) was also reported across the Phoenix metro, with some accumulating small hail or graupel. This created a large media interest across the Phoenix area.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 932155. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.