Following a series of thunderstorms that ripped through portions of the Valley on Tuesday night, chances of a reprise were possible through the afternoon for Greater Phoenix.
According to the National Weather Service, storms had "erupted" in the early hours of Wednesday morning for much of the foothills and higher terrain sections of the Valley, spawning the potential for strong, gusty winds, heavy downpours, frequent lightning and small hail.
These storms have since continued on their path eastward, causing a slew of flash flood warnings and advisories for swaths of Maricopa County.
"It looks like the predominant amount of activity today with shower and thunderstorm activity is going to stay primarily east of Phoenix," Phoenix branch meteorologist Alex Young told The Arizona Republic.
Young added that if storms were to hit the metro area, they'd likely do so toward the middle to late afternoon hours.
Per the forecast, temperatures were slated to be as high as 101 degrees in Phoenix on Wednesday; however, depending on cloud coverage, the Valley could remain below 100 degrees.
"We've got a lot of work to do if we even get to 100 today," Young said.
Looking toward the weekend, conditions will once again start to dry out, decreasing the concerns for convection and warming back up to the mid-100s.
Tuesday storms bring hail, high winds
Tuesday night's storms crushed sections of the Valley, bringing heavy rain, hail and high winds that caused the temporary closure of a school and sent planes at Falcon Field Airport in Mesa airborne.
"Last night we had quite a bit of activity," Young said. "We saw reports of 70-80 mph wind gusts with that at this point. There were some hail reports as well, looks like up to 1.75 inches in the Chandler area."
In regard to rain, according to the Maricopa County Flood Control District, amounts varied all over the metro area and Maricopa County. While a number of areas reported totals below half an inch, those in north Phoenix, east Mesa and Apache Junction took most of the pounding, some areas boasting upward of 2.5 inches
The winds caused structural damage to Zaharis Elementary in Mesa, forcing Mesa Public Schools administration to close the campus until the roof is repaired.
The school district told The Republic that students were scheduled to return to school on Tuesday, Sept. 19, but that could change as staff continued to assess the situation.
Teachers were in contact with their students for at-home learning activities, the district said, and added that families in need of assistance would have to fill out a form emailed to them.
Winds were also felt at Falcon Field Airport, as the reliever to Sky Harbor International and Phoenix-Mesa Gateway got hit hard by the disastrous cell at around 8:30 p.m.
The Maricopa County Flood Control District reported that Falcon Field received nearly 1.5 inches of rain during the downpour.
"They had about 20 planes outside that were damaged, including some that were overturned from the storm," Mesa senior public information specialist Kevin Christopher told The Arizona Republic. "We've got numerous hangars with some damage, both hangars owned by the airport and privately owned."
Two vintage World War II hangars were also among those battered and beaten, one sustaining some roof and door damage, while the other had its roof blown off.
Christopher added that no one was injured and that the airport remains open and never closed during the onslaught's peak.
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