Event narrative (NOAA)
Strong thunderstorms developed across the southeast portions of the greater Phoenix metropolitan area during the afternoon hours on July 29th. Due to the very humid and unstable nature of the airmass, the storms were able to produce locally heavy rainfall with rates in excess of 2 inches per hour. The rains led to flash flooding; at about 5 pm a Flash Flood Warning was issued for the southeast valley including the community of San Tan Valley. According to the Pinal County Fire Department/Rescue, at 620 pm a 2 year boy died after he was swept down a flooded wash that ran behind his San Tan Valley home. A citizen on an ATV found the child and brought him to emergency crews, who performed CPR on the boy before taking him to Banner Ironwood Hospital. He died later that evening.
Other notable flash flood events in Arizona
Source: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database. Deaths and injuries are those NOAA classifies as direct. Damage is the reporting office's estimate at the time and is not inflation-adjusted. This is a catalogue record, not a forecast.