Large hail, flash flooding damage Arizona as more storms loom
More severe thunderstorms threaten central and eastern Arizona Thursday, with the risk extending into southern Utah and western New Mexico.
From destructive flash floods on reservation land to hail unlike anything people in Phoenix remember, severe storms unleashed significant impacts across Arizona on Oct. 21.
Severe thunderstorms brought large hail, damaging winds and flash flooding to Arizona from Wednesday into Thursday, with more storms forecast across the Southwest.
Heavy rain triggered flooding and a rockslide in Clifton, Arizona, sending mud, rocks and floodwater rushing down a residential road. Vehicles were buried in debris, and the roadway was damaged.
Mud and debris covered vehicles in Clifton, Arizona, on Oct. 21, 2026, as severe thunderstorms brought heavy rain to the region. (Image: Troy Young)
Parts of northern Arizona, including Flagstaff, were under a tornado watch through Wednesday evening. It was Arizona’s first tornado watch since October 2010, according to the National Weather Service.
Near the Grand Canyon, AccuWeather Extreme Meteorologist Reed Timmer tracked a supercell thunderstorm that left a large rainbow stretching over the canyon.
A rainbow formed over the Grand Canyon as supercell storms moved into the distance while extreme meteorologist Dr. Reed Timmer reported on Oct. 21.
Dozens of reports of hail, flooding and wind damage came in between Wednesday night and Thursday morning. Hailstones measuring 2 inches in diameter were reported near Phoenix on Thursday.
Storm reports across the Southwest on Wednesday and Thursday.
AccuWeather meteorologists forecast another round of severe thunderstorms Thursday across central and eastern Arizona, with the threat expanding northward into southern Utah and eastward into western New Mexico. Damaging winds, large hail and flash flooding are the main concerns.
A tornado watch was issued for parts of northern and eastern Arizona and western New Mexico through Thursday at 8 p.m. MST.
Repeated downpours could cause normally dry washes and drainage basins to fill rapidly. The severe weather threat will shift primarily to New Mexico on Friday, while thunderstorms could linger over the interior West into the weekend.
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