A woman pulled from the Rillito River died after flash floods and torrential rain swept across much of the city this weekend, authorities say.
“Despite resuscitative efforts, the woman was pronounced deceased,” the Tucson Fire Department posted on X, formerly Twitter. “Details remain limited at this time and the investigation is ongoing.”
“In a span of 90 minutes, TFD responded to over 25 monsoon calls, alongside our auto aid partners. Fifteen of those calls involved stranded drivers or those struck in swift-moving water,” including that of the woman pulled from the Rillito, the fire department said.
She was found in the river at Camp Lowell and Swan roads.
No further details about the incident were released Sunday.
Tucson has had a busy few days of isolated monsoon storms. They started in the area Thursday, with the strongest of the storms hitting the metro area Saturday, leaving 1 to 3 inches of rain in some parts of the city.
“There was a tropical system through Texas and it kind of pushed a lot of moisture towards us,” said Kevin Strongman, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Tucson.
Last year we didn’t have much of moisture, keeping the monsoon levels below normal, said Strongman. It was in the early part of July last year that resulted in a surge of moisture coming through.
While no measurable rainfall was recorded Thursday at the Tucson International Airport, on Friday it recorded 0.35 inches and the storm included strong wind gusts, said Strongman.
Wind gust at the airport reached highs of 36 mph on Thursday, 73 mph on Friday, 34 mph on Saturday and 40 mph on Sunday, said Strongman.
As Saturday rolled in, the first day with a high of less than 100 degrees in Tucson since May 26, much of the Tucson metro was under a flash flood warning until until late in the afternoon.
The storms produced “heavy rainfall and localized flash flooding,” leading to minor flooding in low-lying and poor drainage areas, rising in small streams and water over roadways. Tucson's weather service recorded rainfall between 1 and 3 inches across the northeastern part of the metro area, while the airport saw only 200th of an inch, according to Pima County's flood control map.
On Saturday, 2.2 inches of rain was recorded near East Sunrise Drive and North Kolb Road as well as in midtown near Tucson Medical Center and on West 22nd Street near Interstate 10, according to the county’s flood control map. Meanwhile, .83 inches of rain was recorded near Randolph Park and 1.06 inches of rain was recorded near West Prince and North Oracle roads, the map showed.
