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Tropical Storm Octave was considered the worst tropical cyclone in the history of Arizona. The origins of Tropical Storm Octave were from a tropical disturbance that formed south of the Gulf of Tehuantepec on September 23, 1983. Steered by a deep layer high over Mexico, the disturbance moved west for four days before becoming a tropical depression on September 27 off the southwest coast of Mexico. Over an area of warm sea surface temperatures, it was able to quickly strengthen to peak winds of 50 mph (85 km/h), through wind shear prevented much further development. By September 30, Octave was accelerating to the northeast, steadily weakening due to cooler waters. That day it weakened to tropical depression status, and on October 2, Octave dissipated. In Arizona, the highest rainfall total was at Mount Graham. In Tucson, flood waters were reportedly 8 ft (2.4 m) high. Throughout the state, excessive rainfall caused many rivers to overflow. After the rain ended, the Santa Cruz, Rillito, and Gila rivers experienced their highest crests on record. Five towns – Clifton, Duncan, Winkelman, Hayden, and Marana – were almost completely flooded. In Marana, many homes were submerged, forcing residents to be evacuated. Over 700 homes were destroyed in Clifton. In addition, 86 of the town's 126 business were heavily damaged due to the flooding. Around 3,000 buildings were destroyed due to Octave. A total of 853 houses, mobile homes, and apartments were destroyed while 2,052 others were damaged. About 10,000 people were temporarily left homeless. Damage in Arizona totaled $500 million (1983 USD), which was above the preliminary estimate of $300 million. Fourteen people drowned and 975 persons were injured. Elsewhere, Octave was responsible for $12.5 million in damage in New Mexico. Following the storm, governor Bruce Babbitt declared a state of emergency. President Ronald Reagan declared Cochise, Gila, Graham, Greenlee, Pima, Pinal, Santa Cruz and Yavapai counties a "major disaster area". ==Background== Well before the start of the rainfall, much of Arizona had been affected by a wet winter and subsequent monsoon season leaving the grounds saturated and susceptible to flooding.〔 Moreover, the months of August and September had been very wet months for most of the Southwestern United States. In fact, it had rained almost every other day at many weather stations in Arizona.〔 The remnants of a Pacific hurricane brought rain to much of California and part of Arizona. Then, on September 22, the North American Monsoon became active over the region. This was atypical for late September; by this time, in a normal year the climate is dry. However, in late September 1983, surface weather maps exhibited a few unusual features. A thermal low lay over the mouth of the Gulf of California while the tail end of a weak cold front was located atop of the Great Basin.〔 On September 28, moisture from the storm began spreading across Mexico and the southwest United States, due to a stalled low pressure area off the coast of California drawing the thunderstorms northeastward. Tropical Storm Octave played a vital role in the disaster by supplying warm, moisture to the region, which collided with cooler air from the subtropics.〔 By October 2, the heaviest rainfall had ended.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Tropical Storm Octave (1983)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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