Valentine’s Day brought high winds and winter weather advisories to the entire Phoenix area.
According to the National Weather Service’s Phoenix Office, a system of storms raging from the northwest was heading toward Arizona, resulting in a mountain of weather conditions.
Sean Benedict, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service Phoenix, told the Arizona Republic, “We’re going to have a pretty strong system going through. It’s actually still a little way to the northwest.” , winds will pick up fairly quickly this afternoon and into the evening.”
Benedict said Tuesday afternoon gusts will be around 30 to 40 miles per hour, with peak gusts likely reaching 45 to 50 miles per hour.
As always, high winds have the ability to whip up dust.
“These winds can also create dust blows, especially south of Phoenix and parts of Pinal County, where a dust blow advisory has been issued this afternoon/evening,” Benedict said.
Plus, the possibility of rain could ruin your Valentine’s Day plans.
“There’s a pretty good chance of rain,” Benedict said. “Generally, the chance of rain starts to increase towards mid-to-late afternoon and continues until about 11pm or midnight.”
However, the rainfall window is expected to be very short, as the rainfall-carrying systems pass quickly.
As Benedict described it, a “well-defined line of showers” can lead to rain, followed by a blow of dry air, and “clearing very quickly into the late evening and into the night.”
one more.
“When this comes in, it’s going to be very cold air, so the snow level will drop pretty quickly, so it could even be snowing in some areas north and east of Phoenix. Time shift,” said Benedict. “Some highlands, especially areas above 5,000 feet, have issued winter weather advisories of approximately 3 to 7 inches.”
However, given how fast this system moves through Arizona, snow is unlikely.
However, going forward, Tuesday is likely to be the most affected by the weather. Wednesday and Thursday morning With minimum temperatures of 35 and 39 degrees respectively, only cold weather is expected. Weekend temperatures will rise again from Friday, with highs above 68 degrees Celsius.
Whiteout in Northern Arizona?
The people of Phoenix are happy about the snow, but much of northern Arizona is currently under siege.
According to the National Weather Service’s Flagstaff office, Heaviest snowfall expected Tuesday through Wednesdayfor the Flagstaff reception area 8 to 12 inches of snow.
School districts in Northern Arizona were closed for the day due to inclement weather. Flagstaff Unified School District and Williams Unified School District.
Northern Arizona University also announced Classes starting after 4 p.m. on mountain campuses were canceled and university offices were closed. The school shuttle will run until 4:30 p.m., the university said on Twitter.
Similar to the forecast for Phoenix, northern Arizona is also experiencing strong winds reaching around 35 to 55 mph.
Except it’s blowing snow instead of blowing dust.
Whiteout conditions combined with slippery roads create a dangerous mix of travel conditions in Northern Arizona.
Forecasts along both Interstate 17 and Interstate 40 show rising snow levels, most notably above 7,000 feet at Flagstaff on I-4012 ~ 18 inches.
Drivers who cannot delay their trip are advised to pack an emergency kit including water, snacks and a mobile phone charger. You can always check the travel conditions in advance. az511.gov to keep you up to date.
Officials warn that road closures are likely in northern Arizona. The Arizona Department of Transportation has since California State Route 64 (mileposts 264-240) and State Route 89A (mileposts 375-398) were closed in both directions due to winter weather.
