Thunderstorms with flash flood risk to break heat in West
Downpours and thunderstorms will visit many parts of the interior West later this weekend to early next week. The storms may not only break the heat, they could have dangerous consequences for some.
John Jensenius, with the National Lightning Safety Council, was live on the AccuWeather Network on May 29 to discuss lightning safety tips.
A surge of moisture will break the heat in the West and trigger showers and thunderstorms that could be heavy enough to pose some risks to lives and property later this weekend to early next week, AccuWeather meteorologists say.
The pattern change will follow several days of extreme heat and record highs in some areas that lasted into Saturday.
A pair of storms—one in the Northwest and the other in the Southwest—will push inland over the weekend. The southern storm will help tap into subtropical moisture with thunderstorms starting to develop as early as Saturday afternoon.
Many in the interior Southwest, Great Basin and Rockies will notice an uptick in humidity from Sunday to Monday. As this occurs, numerous showers and thunderstorms will erupt over the region.
Lightning strikes will be the most prominent danger to those outdoors. Hikers should be off the ridges by lunchtime to allow for getting to safety at lower elevations as storms build in the afternoon.
In some areas, little to no rain may fall from the storms. Gusty winds associated with the thunderstorms can kick up blowing dust in some instances, which can be a hazard for motorists on the highways. This can be especially problematic over parts of Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, southwestern Colorado and the eastern part of Southern California.
Lightning strikes from mainly dry thunderstorms could spark wildfires.
In other cases, torrential downpours can help to briefly ease local drought conditions, while runoff can be significant and pose some dangers to motorists, hikers and campers in the region.
Some of the major arid cities of the interior West, such as Phoenix, Las Vegas and Salt Lake City, could experience more than one gusty or drenching thunderstorm from Sunday to Monday.
Those traveling through or settled in the wilderness for weekend ventures should avoid arroyos (dry stream beds) and activities along small streams and canyons, as these areas may rapidly fill with water, even with thunderstorms that are a mile or more upstream.
Meanwhile, in the tropical eastern Pacific, Tropical Storm Alvin has formed and will push northward along the west coast of Mexico into this weekend. While Alvin is forecast to weaken prior to landfall, some of its moisture may survive the northward trip into the southwestern U.S. by early next week and could further enhance the rainfall and thunderstorms in some locations, such as in parts of New Mexico, Texas and Arizona.
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