Super monsoon storm in Phoenix

[Mangosteen]

@GIGObuster

what Morgyn said, and indeed, it has been very dry, here is a bit from the last report from August from the University of Arizona:

http://www.climas.arizona.edu/swco/aug-2014/southwest-climate-outlook-august-2014
As we are a desert we had an advantage as over here there are a lot of projects going on to save water and more infrastructure to deal with dry conditions. IIUC the state is also noticeable on ignoring many climate change deniers by not stopping ongoing projects to deal with the issue today and in the future. There will be more underground reservoirs that are or will keep a lot of water from events like the one we passed through.

Eventually we will need to discourage the wide use of pools and lawns though, getting rid of mine has saved me a lot on the water bill.

Do you have a water catchment tank? Mine holds 10,000 gallons. Rain water flows off the roof into gutters that fill the tank.

[ftg]

Odile is the next tropical system moving up off the coast of Mexico. Expect some spin-off of its moisture in a week+.

The eastern Pacific has been unusually active this season. (Scroll down.)

Get used to the rain.

(“Odile”. Anyone else thinking about Day For Night. Oh, well.)

[Son_of_a_Rich]

@beowulff

That’s not the issue.
The problem is the overpasses - the freeway dips below grade to allow for the overpasses, and all that water overwhelms the drains, which inevitably get clogged with debris.

Here is a photo I took this morning of a normally dry “wash” that’s near my house. This runs through a golf course, like many other washes (arroyo) do out here.

What’s that pink thing one picture over

[beowulff]

@Son_of_a_Rich

What’s that pink thing one picture over

You tell me:

Help ID this bizarre, creepy object found in Mesa, AZ (paging Colibri?)

(best guess - a spiky glove)

[campp]

@Bookkeeper

It seems that it would have been smarter to raise the overpasses.

Prohibitively expensive. This is a BIG city with LOTS of crossing streets. Much cheaper to build on grade or below.

[Lamar_Mundane]

Odile’s remnants falling on saturated ground could make it worse than the last one. The fun stuff starts tomorrow.

Now there’s a new Tropical Storm, Polo, following closely in Odile’s path. Polo should be a hurricane by Thursday.

[Bumbershoot]

What’s left of Odile is supposed to arrive in the Albuquerque area on Thursday. That last storm you guys had missed us. Southern NM has already received an inch of rain today and the heavy stuff isn’t here yet. Hadn’t heard about Polo.

Hurricanes in the desert. It’s the end of the world as we know it.

[Duckster]

@PastTense

I thought there was an enormous drought out West? Not in Arizona? In a drought situation one would think everyone would welcome heavy rains.

Just because a monsoon storm drops rain does not mean the drought is over. The Pacific Northwest has been in a drought for ten years (and still going) despite the rain it receives. A couple of years ago a climatologist said for the PNW to be over the drought it would have to mist rain 24/7/365 for about two years straight.