State of emergency declared in wake of powerful microburst that left miles of damage in Tempe

FOX Weather Meteorologist Steve Bender breaks down the microburst that wreaked havoc through Tempe, Arizona and is joined by Dale Sievwright, owner of Autoplex Auto Service, who was inside his shop when the microburst erupted and ripped the doors off of the building he was inside. 

TEMPE, Ariz. — A state of emergency was declared in Tempe, Arizona as cleanup efforts continue in the wake of a powerful microburst that left a trail of damage across hundreds of homes and businesses.

The storm swept through Tempe with 80-90 mph winds on Monday, wreaking havoc across the city and Maricopa County.

“This supercell moved mobile homes off their foundations, blew rooftops as much as 400 feet and downed so many beautiful, 100-year-old trees,” Tempe Mayor Corey Woods said during a press conference Friday. “We are so fortunate that the flying wreckage did not kill anyone.”

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs signed an emergency declaration for Maricopa County, home to the Phoenix suburb of Tempe, and neighboring Gila County on Friday that will free up $200,000 in immediate funds for help and mobilize state resources to help in the recovery efforts.  

Hobbs’ office says over 750 homes and 70 small businesses suffered damage in the microburst, fueled by the remnants of Tropical Storm Raymond. 

As owner of Autoplex Auto Service in Tempe, Arizona, Sievwright was inside his business on Monday as thunderstorms approached when the microburst erupted and ripped the front off of his building.

MICROBURST WREAKS HAVOC, LEAVES TRAIL OF DAMAGE IN TEMPE AS ARIZONA IS SLAMMED BY STRONG THUNDERSTORMS  

“We came out, and the front door was just flapping in and out,” Sievwright said in an interview with FOX Weather Meteorologist Steve Bender. “So we went to try to close the door, and I was trying to hold the door closed and then all of a sudden, we heard the cracking from the windows on the other side, and then we just took off running. And literally, like two seconds later the whole front of the building came off.”

Dale Sievwright was in the shop with an Autoplex Auto Service employee. Both were unharmed when the microburst ripped through parts of the building and tore off the majority of the front of the building.

Woods said over 130 residents are displaced due to damaged homes and apartments, and the city lost over 500 trees just in their parks alone. Over 34,000 people lost power.

A microburst is a type of downburst, spawned from an incredible downdraft that spills from the belly of thunderstorms. According to a damage assessment from the National Weather Service Phoenix, Tuesday’s storm packed widespread 70 mph wind damage, with the worst damage occurring locally where winds reached between 80 and 90 mph with a peak gust of 91 mph.

Woods said the storm left their police and fire departments scrambling to help. Tempe police received 369 calls for help in just one hour — more than eight times the hourly average. Tempe Fire had 170 calls for help in three hours and overall the city responded to over 1,000 calls throughout the day.

“I’d like to thank the crews from our surrounding cities for stepping in to help us respond to everyone as timely as possible,” Woods said.

Hobbs’ office says the next step is that the state will apply for federal help.