Plunging temperatures and lingering cloud cover brought a rare sight to many parts of the Valley today - brief periods of snow flurries, the National Weather Service said.

Sightings were reported in Scottsdale, Paradise Valley, Fountain Hills, Cave Creek, Peoria, Glendale and Anthem and parts of Phoenix.

The Weather Service confirmed the reports in several of those communities.

Weather Service officials said the phenomenon may have included something called graupel, a form of soft hail that can occur under certain conditions. But many residents were convinced what they saw was indeed snow flurries.

Several residents separately confirmed seeing falling flurries, including several in the Scottsdale area.

Tommy Leclere, manager of Carlsbad Tavern restaurant near Hayden and Osborn roads, said pea-sized snow flakes began falling from the sky around 12:30 p.m. It came down intermittently for about 15 minutes, with the flakes hitting the ground and melting.


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