Arizona Monsoon
by David Borchardt
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In Arizona, as in other parts of the world including India and Thailand, we experience a monsoon, which is a time of high temperatures, high winds and high dew points. And now Arizona has an official “Monsoon Season” that begins on June 15th and ends on September 30th. Prior to 2008 the determination of a monsoon season would be if there were 3 consecutive days of 55 degree (or higher) dew points, then the monsoon officially began. On average, this would generally occur somewhere around July 7th, so people were not always concerned or aware that any storm from the middle of June on could be considered a monsoon storm.

The National Weather Service decided to come up with an official start date and ending date, not so much for actually determining when a monsoon could occur, but to make sure the residents of Arizona would be aware of the fact that a monsoon could happen at any time during the season. The designation of an official monsoon season was to take the focus off whether or not a storm was considered a monsoon storm or not, but more to make people aware of the fact there easily could be a monsoon during this time frame, so it was more of a concern and awareness for public safety.

If you’re wondering what actually happens during a monsoon storm, here are a couple of examples. A monsoon storm can range from a minor dust storm to violent thunderstorms. Usually a monsoon starts with heavy winds that sometimes result in a wall of dust hundreds of feet high. If you happen to be driving and notice a wall of dust approaching, we are told to pull off to the right side of the road as far as possible, put the car in park and be sure to take your foot off the brake pedal. This type of dust storm is also referred to as a “haboob” which is a word taken from the dust storms of Saudi Arabia. They normally are accompanied by frequent thunder and spectacular lightning which then leads to heavy down pours of rain. The typical monsoon season produces about 2 ½” of rain, which is approx. 1/3 of the yearly rainfall.

There can be damage caused by high winds (downed trees and power lines) as well as damage to roofs of homes and especially to manufactured homes which are not built quite as sturdy as your typical home structure. There are many, many mobile homes and manufactured homes in Arizona for the winter “snow birds”. There also can be power outages for short periods of time and when the temperature reaches 110 degrees, you don’t want to be without air conditionin for too long. The roads are also a concern with street flooding because most are not built to drain water quickly because the rain is so rare that the costs associated with building drains could not be justified. Arizona has also instituted a “Stupid Motorist Law”, which says a person that tries to cross a road that is flooded and had signs warning motorists not to cross because of flash flooding, that motorist can now be penalized with a fine equal to the cost of police and fire personnel to rescue them. This can amount to a serious amount of money.

The monsoon is not to be taken lightly and hopefully with the awareness now of an official season, people with be more alert and concerned for their safety.