Phoenix Arizona Waterfront Homes

Summer Haboob strikes on July 5th

It had its origin in Tucson then progressed northward to Phoenix.  The “haboob” arrived in Phoenix late afternoon with winds in excess of 50 mph and a vertical height of 5,000 to 6,000 ft.    The picture to the left was taken at the National Weather Service Phoenix office.  The storm even shut down Phoenix SkyHarbor Airport for 45 minutes with visibility near zero.  While this haboob was one of the largest in history, Phoenix averages about 3 per year during June through September.

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Severe thunderstorms bring needed rain but cause flooding

It  is almost pointless to talk to someone in July when the temperature is 110 degrees about what happens in Phoenix when it rains. You want to point out how planned communities have drainage plans and retention basins, etc.   The situation in the summer  may be that no precipitation has been seen for months, so they wonder why you’re even bringing it up. Well, the last couple of day we’ve been drenched and now those plans and preparation are very much needed and appreciated.  Meteorologists are even saying that we may see as much rainfall in this 5 day period as we saw all of last year!  Yesterday there was even a tornado warning,  and many roads have been closed because of  flooding.  The picture above is not a lake water feature for a subdivision.  It may be for the time being, but actually it is a retention basin with grass in the community common area that accumualtes the runoff from storms such as the one we are having that has dumped over 3″ inches of rain in a 24 hour period in some parts of they valley.

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 It’s not a question I’m asked very often, but it is the start of the discussion regarding natural disasters and weather concerns from those considering relocating to the Phoenix area.

Our biggest climate concern? THE HEAT, followed by monsoon storms that can generate occasional high winds, dust storms and intense localized rainfall. The closest we get to a tornado are microbursts which accompany the monsoon storms.  The monsoon season runs from July through August.

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