Landspout tornado confirmed south of downtown Phoenix
[ad_1]
The strong monsoon storms that downed trees and power poles and flooded streets in the Valley late Thursday afternoon brought one more surprise — a tornado.
The tornado formed in the skies just south of downtown Phoenix by gusts of wind going 40 miles per hour about 5 p.m., said Andrew Deemer, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Phoenix.
Based on radar & photo evidence, we’ve classified a brief landspout tornado south of downtown Phoenix. #azwxpic.twitter.com/nSsODiHH2s
“A tornado is spawned from a parent thunderstorm with a rotating updraft, but a landspout isn’t. A landspout requires a towering cumulus cloud to be present over a boundary of converging winds near the surface. As that cumulus cloud grows and passes over the boundary, the rotating air is stretched vertically and eventually grows into a landspout. If you’ve ever seen a waterspout develop, it’s very similar, except landspouts occur over land.”
The NWS tweeted images of the tornado shared with the agency via social media along with a radar screenshot confirming what it described as a “brief” landspout tornado over an area southwest of the Interstate 17 and 10 freeway split south of downtown Phoenix.
It was the first reported tornado in the Phoenix area since Oct. 6, 2015, when one was cited over Goodyear, according to NWS.
Water erupts out of a manhole at Sky Harbor International Airport during a storm on Aug. 3, 2017. Michael Chow/azcentral.com
12 of 38
CLOSE
ARIZONA’S 2017 MONSOON SEASONDriver gets stuck on flooded street | 0:40
A woman who drove past a “road closed” sign on Citrus Road, just south of Interstate 10 in Goodyear, gets stuck in the mud and has to abandon her car after heavy rains soaked the Valley on July 24, 2017. Tom Tingle/azcentral.com
13 of 38
CLOSE
ARIZONA’S 2017 MONSOON SEASONMesa Fire and Medical rescue in Apache Junction | 1:24
Mesa Fire and Medical crews rescued a stranded motorist in Apache Junction on July 24, 2017. Mesa Fire and Medical Department
Rainfall soaks 64th Street in Mesa on July 24, 2017. Wendy Killeen/azcentral.com
24 of 38
CLOSE
ARIZONA’S 2017 MONSOON SEASONDust storm moves toward the Phoenix area | 0:25
A dust storm moves toward the Valley on July 23, 2017. Michael Chow/azcentral.com
25 of 38
CLOSE
ARIZONA’S 2017 MONSOON SEASONMonsoon storm in Phoenix | 0:17
Rain near Seventh Street and Glendale Avenue in Phoenix on July 21, 2017. Lindsey Collom/azcentral.com
26 of 38
CLOSE
ARIZONA’S 2017 MONSOON SEASONPouring rain at Power and Brown roads in east Mesa July 20, 2017 | 0:50
Lightning is flashing and rain is soaking east Mesa near Power and Brown roads Thursday night, July 20, 2017. Wendy Killeen/azcentral.com
27 of 38
CLOSE
ARIZONA’S 2017 MONSOON SEASONRiding out a monsoon windstorm in Phoenix | 0:23
A peach-faced lovebird rides out a monsoon windstorm in a mesquite tree in Phoenix on July 14, 2017. Rob Schumacher/azcentral.com
28 of 38
CLOSE
ARIZONA’S 2017 MONSOON SEASONImages from Friday’s Phoenix-area storm | 1:12
Images from the storm on July 14, 2017. Wochit
29 of 38
CLOSE
ARIZONA’S 2017 MONSOON SEASONMonsoon storm approaches in far West Valley | 0:35
An approaching monsoon storm near Surprise and Waddell kicks up a lot of dust on July 14, 2017. April Morganroth/azcentral.com
30 of 38
CLOSE
ARIZONA’S 2017 MONSOON SEASONTime-lapse of monsoon storm thunderhead building over Carefree | 2:40
Azcentral.com photographer Rob Schumacher shot this beautiful time-lapse video of monsoon storm thunderhead building over Carefree. Rob Schumacher/The Republic
31 of 38
CLOSE
ARIZONA’S 2017 MONSOON SEASONTime-lapse view of monsoon storm from Broadway curve in Phoenix | 0:40
Azcentral.com photographer David Kadlubowski shot this beautiful time-lapse video of a monsoon storm in Phoenix.
32 of 38
CLOSE
ARIZONA’S 2017 MONSOON SEASONStorm downs tree in Gold Canyon | 0:14
A tree that fell over during a storm on July 10, 2017, is disposed of in Gold Canyon. Loren Townsley/azcentral.com
33 of 38
CLOSE
ARIZONA’S 2017 MONSOON SEASONWatch a dust storm move across the East Valley | 0:27
A dust storm moves across the East Valley during a monsoon storm July 10, 2017.
34 of 38
CLOSE
ARIZONA’S 2017 MONSOON SEASONMonsoon rains hit far West Valley | 10:24
A microburst drops some rain near Waddell on July 10, 2017. April Morganroth/azcentral.com
35 of 38
CLOSE
ARIZONA’S 2017 MONSOON SEASONClouds form over Mount Lemmon | 0:33
Meteorologists’ video of storm clouds as they form and evaporate and reform and evaporate over Mount Lemmon on Aug. 17, 2006. Video shot by Joseph Zehnder; Weldon B. Johnson/azcentral.com Wochit
36 of 38
CLOSE
ARIZONA’S 2017 MONSOON SEASONDowntown Phoenix, July 15, 2017 | 0:11
Newspaper stands are knocked over as a thunderstorm makes it’s way through Phoenix.