Alert archive / California / High Wind Watches in 2008

High Wind Watch 21, NWS Las Vegas, NV

December 18, 2008Inyo County, California

NWS Las Vegas, NV issued this high wind watch at Dec 18, 2008, 3:15 PM PST for Inyo County, California. It took effect at Dec 19, 2008, 2:00 AM PST. It was in force for .

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Dec 18, 2008, 3:15 PM PST (23:15 UTC)
In effect from
Dec 19, 2008, 2:00 AM PST
Expired
Dec 18, 2008, 9:17 PM PST
In force
Issued by
NWS Las Vegas, NV

County Inyo County, CA

The nearest sounding before it

Mercury/Desert R, NV (KDRA), launched 12:00Z, 11.3 hours before the alert went out and 127 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Mercury/Desert R, NV at 12:00Z on 2008-12-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Mercury/Desert R, NV at 12:00Z on 2008-12-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 9 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
689 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
28 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
9 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
1 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
WWUS75 KVEF 182315
NPWVEF

URGENT - WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAS VEGAS NV
315 PM PST THU DEC 18 2008

CAZ519-190715-
/O.NEW.KVEF.HW.A.0021.081219T1000Z-081220T0000Z/
EASTERN SIERRA SLOPES-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...ASPENDELL...MT WHITNEY
315 PM PST THU DEC 18 2008

...HIGH WIND WATCH IN EFFECT FROM 2 AM PST FRIDAY THROUGH FRIDAY
AFTERNOON...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LAS VEGAS HAS ISSUED A HIGH WIND
WATCH FOR THE EASTERN SIERRA SLOPES...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 2
AM PST FRIDAY THROUGH FRIDAY AFTERNOON.

A STRONG LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL MOVE ACROSS THE NORTHERN GREAT
BASIN TONIGHT AND FRIDAY. CONDITIONS LOOK FAVORABLE FOR A STRONG
DOWNSLOPE WIND EVENT AFTER MIDNIGHT ALONG THE UPPER EASTERN SLOPES
OF THE SIERRA WITH SUSTAINED WINDS AROUND 50 MPH AND GUSTS IN
EXCESS OF 70 MPH POSSIBLE. THE STRONGEST WINDS ARE EXPECTED OVER
THE CREST AND AT CANYON OPENINGS ALONG THE EAST SLOPES.

A HIGH WIND WATCH MEANS THERE IS THE POTENTIAL FOR A HAZARDOUS
HIGH WIND EVENT. SUSTAINED WINDS OF AT LEAST 50 MPH AND...OR
GUSTS OF 70 MPH OR STRONGER MAY OCCUR IN THE WATCH AREA. CONTINUE
TO MONITOR FORECASTS FOR THE LATEST INFORMATION.

$$
1 follow-up statement
000 
WWUS75 KVEF 190517
NPWVEF

URGENT - WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAS VEGAS NV
917 PM PST THU DEC 18 2008

CAZ519-191500-
/O.UPG.KVEF.HW.A.0021.081219T1000Z-081220T0000Z/
/O.NEW.KVEF.WI.Y.0050.081219T1000Z-081220T0000Z/
EASTERN SIERRA SLOPES-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...ASPENDELL...MT WHITNEY
917 PM PST THU DEC 18 2008

...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 2 AM TO 4 PM PST FRIDAY...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LAS VEGAS HAS ISSUED A WIND
ADVISORY FOR THE EAST SLOPES OF THE SIERRA ABOVE 5000 FEET...WHICH
IS IN EFFECT FROM 2 AM TO 4 PM PST FRIDAY. THE HIGH WIND WATCH
IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT.

A STRONG LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL MOVE ACROSS THE NORTHERN GREAT
BASIN TONIGHT AND FRIDAY. A JET STREAM MOVING ACROSS THE SIERRA
WILL LEAD TO VERY STRONG RIDGETOP WINDS AND THESE STRONG WINDS
WILL DESCEND DOWN THE UPPER EAST SLOPES OF THE SIERRA AT TIMES
LATE TONIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY. SUSTAINED WINDS WILL GENERALLY RANGE
FROM 35 TO 45 MPH WITHE GUSTS AROUND 65 MPH.

A WIND ADVISORY MEANS THAT WIND ADVISORY MEANS THAT WINDS OF 40 TO 
49 MPH AND...OR WIND GUSTS OF 58 TO 69 MPH ARE EXPECTED. WINDS
THIS STRONG CAN MAKE DRIVING DIFFICULT...ESPECIALLY FOR HIGH
PROFILE VEHICLES. USE EXTRA CAUTION.

$$

Nearby

High Wind Watches in California, 2008Every high wind watch in 2008

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.