It’s Monsoon Mayhem in the Desert Southwest

It’s officially monsoon season here in the Desert Southwest having started back in June and lasting till September, which mean we could be seeing heavy rain and thunderstorm coming our way admits scorching temperatures. “Then we get some really massive thunderstorms that come out of nowhere and they’ll dump inches of rain in minutes sometimes,” said Paul Brierley. Monsoons aren’t a common occurrence throughout the world, only taking place in Arizona and in India. It’s a storm not to be taking lightly as it can cause major damage. “Very strong rushing water and the strength of water has resulted in vehicle being washed away and a lot of fatalities in Arizona,” said Mike Erfert. Floods and thunderstorms are some of the ingredients that can be detrimental to a farmers crop. “That may ripple on down and impact when we can plant vegetables, which impacts when we can harvest the vegetables and meet that contract,” said Brierley. Paul Brierley with YCEDA tells us how a Monsoon can start. “A pattern sets up that spins moisture up from the golf of Mexico a nd so we get a lot of moisture flowing here and then the heat and the sun causes thunderstorms to develop,” said Brierley. As for now we have yet see a monsoonal thunderstorm come our way in Yuma, but experts say its important to stop whatever you’re doing and find shelter and or high ground that is safe from flooding.