Monsoon season could get early start in Phoenix area this week

PHOENIX — A somewhat rare weather event has been building around the Phoenix area — an early monsoon rainfall.

Austin Jamison with the National Weather Service said Tuesday the monsoon season will be here about three weeks earlier than normal.

“It’s not a slam dunk that everyplace will get a lot of rain but in the Valley we’re looking at amounts of up to a quarter of an inch,” Jamison said of the late-week rain activity.

Combined with two days of excessive heat warnings, it’s going to be a nasty week of weather in the Valley. An excessive heat warning was set to run from 10 a.m. Tuesday until 8 p.m. Wednesday.

Temperatures both days were expected to pass 110 degrees.

The official start date for monsoon season is June 15, but the average first date is July 7. Hurricane Bud off of Mexico’s Pacific coast has been playing a role in the accelerated outlook.

“That’s what’s really driving the potential here,” Jamison said.

It hasn’t rained in the Valley since March 11. The city has had 1 inch of rain since Oct. 1, which is about 4.3 inches below normal for that time span.

“People shouldn’t count on seeing a lot of rain but should be prepared for some localized flooding,” Jamison said.

But these incoming storms should really pull the plug on the extreme heat.

Humidity will start to climb Thursday and the difference in the air will be really noticeable Friday, with a dew point of around 60.

Temperatures will drop to 95 degrees and fall even more on a cloudy Saturday, with an expected high of 92.

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