Alert archive / California / Flash Flood Warnings in 2023

Flash Flood Warning 2, NWS Hanford, CA

January 10, 2023Tulare County, California

NWS Hanford, CA issued this flash flood warning at Jan 10, 2023, 4:04 PM PST for Tulare County, California. It was in force for 86 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued: Jan 10, 2023, 4:04 PM PST (00:04 UTC)
Expired: Jan 10, 2023, 5:30 PM PST
In force: 86 min
Issued by: NWS Hanford, CA
Area: Storm-based polygon
Damage threat: Considerable
Flood severity: None

County Tulare County, CA

The radar

The San Joaquin Valley radar (KHNX), 75 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:07 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.

Open the radar archive at this moment

The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.

The nearest sounding before it

Vandenberg AFB, CA (KVBG), launched 00:00Z, 0.1 hours before the alert went out and 226 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 54 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -7 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1064 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 99 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 2 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 76 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this flash flood warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Hanford, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before this flash flood warning went out at Jan 10, 3:23 PM PST, 41 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 10, 3:23 PM PST, 41 minutes before

Area Forecast Discussion...UPDATED
National Weather Service Hanford CA
323 PM PST Tue Jan 10 2023

.UPDATE...
Updated AIR QUALITY ISSUES section.

&&

.SYNOPSIS...
A strong storm system will continue through tonight bringing
scattered showers with a slight chance of thunderstorms. There
is a chance of light to moderate precipitation from Fresno County
northward on Wednesday. Dry weather will prevail Thursday into
early Friday but dense fog is possible in the San Joaquin Valley.
Another storm system may arrive by Friday afternoon with more wet
weather likely over the weekend.

&&

.DISCUSSION...
Another active weather day across the central California interior
though not quite as intense as yesterday when record rainfall was
measured at Merced, Fresno, Hanford, and Bakersfield. Impressive
rain totals occurred in the Sierra Nevada with 2 day rain amounts
around 10 inches at the Shaver Lake RAWS and Dinkey Creek RAWS,
and around 8 inches at the Wawona RAWS. The air mass is unstable
with colder air aloft and there have been isolated thunderstorms
mainly across Merced, Mariposa, and Madera Counties with a strong
cell near Coarsegold. Scattered showers and a slight chance for
thunderstorms will continue this evening with most of the activity
expected over the mountains. Things will really wind down later
tonight with just a few light showers possible over the Sierra.
The snow level is around 4500 feet this afternoon and will lower
to near 3500 late tonight. A Flood Watch and Winter Storm Warning
remain in effect until 4 AM Wednesday but can likely be cancelled
early if things taper off.

Another system will affect mainly northern California on Wednesday
but there is a chance for precipitation from around Fresno County
northward. Any rain across the SJ Valley should be light with QPF
generally one tenth of an inch or less. Rain up to three quarters
of an inch is possible around Yosemite NP tapering off to around
one quarter of an inch possible for Kings Canyon NP. Snow levels
are expected to be 6000 - 7000 feet with accumulations to around
6 inches possible for Yosemite NP. An upper ridge building over
the interior west looks to keep us dry Thursday into early Friday
but dense fog will be a possibility across the San Joaquin Valley.

Model ensembles indicate the progressive weather pattern is likely
to continue with another series of short waves progged to move in
from the Pacific this weekend into early next week. Precipitation
chances return on Friday afternoon then increase on Saturday and
remain good through Tuesday. Early QPF estimates from the weekend
through next Tuesday show up to 2 inches of rain for the SJ Valley
and up to 7 inches for the Sierra Nevada, but much can change by
then. Snow levels look to be around 5000 feet for most of the event.

&&

.AVIATION...In the San Joaquin Valley, West Side Hills and Sierra
foothills, areas of MVFR and local IFR conditions in low clouds
and rain thru 06Z Wed. Isolated thunderstorms until 03Z Wed. In
the Sierra Nevada and Tehachapi Mountains, areas of mountain
obscuring IFR conditions in low clouds and precipitation through
12Z Wed. VFR conditions will prevail across the Kern Co Desert.

&&

.AIR QUALITY ISSUES...
On Wednesday January 11 2023,Fireplace/Wood Stove Burning Status
is: No Burning Unless Registered in Fresno and Kern Counties.
Burning Discouraged in Kings, Madera, Merced, and Tulare Counties,
and Kern (Greater Frazier Park Area) and Sequoia National Park
and Forest.

&&

.CERTAINTY...

The level of certainty for days 1 and 2 is high.
The level of certainty for days 3 through 7 is medium.

Certainty levels include low...medium...and high. Please visit
www.weather.gov/hnx/certainty.html for additional information
and/or to provide feedback.

&&

.HNX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
Flood Watch through late tonight for CAZ300>325-327-329>336-338.

Winter Storm Warning until 4 AM PST Wednesday for CAZ323-326>330.

&&

Public/Aviation/Fire Weather...DCH
PIO/DSS........................JDB

weather.gov/hanford

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jan 10, 3:19 PM PST, 45 minutes before

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Local storm report, Jan 10, 3:21 PM PST, 43 minutes before

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Local storm report, Jan 10, 3:22 PM PST, 42 minutes before

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Special weather statement, Jan 10, 3:22 PM PST, 42 minutes before

Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service San Joaquin Valley CA
322 PM PST Tue Jan 10 2023

CAZ312-319-320-328>330-102345-
Visalia - Porterville - Reedley CA-Fresno-Tulare Foothills CA-
Kings Canyon NP CA-Grant Grove Area CA-Sequoia NP CA-Fresno-
Tulare Lower Sierra CA-
322 PM PST Tue Jan 10 2023

...A strong thunderstorm will impact portions of northwestern Tulare
and east central Fresno Counties through 345 PM PST...

At 321 PM PST, Doppler radar was tracking a strong thunderstorm 15
miles northeast of Orange Cove, or 31 miles northeast of Visalia,
moving east at 25 mph.

HAZARD...Winds in excess of 40 mph and half inch hail.

SOURCE...Radar indicated.

IMPACT...Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around
         unsecured objects. Minor damage to outdoor objects is
         possible.

Locations impacted include...
Orange Cove, Grant Grove, Crystal Springs Campground, Big Meadows,
Pinehurst, Squaw Valley, Park Ridge, Azalea Campground, Sunset
Campground, Hume Lake, Grant Grove Visitor Center and Mitchell
Meadow.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

If outdoors, consider seeking shelter inside a building.

&&

LAT...LON 3656 11932 3673 11937 3692 11880 3669 11869
TIME...MOT...LOC 2321Z 252DEG 23KT 3673 11907

MAX HAIL SIZE...0.50 IN
MAX WIND GUST...40 MPH

JMC

Local storm report, Jan 10, 3:26 PM PST, 38 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HANFORD CA
326 PM PST TUE JAN 10 2023

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0325 PM     FLOOD            AVENUE 250/ROAD 216     36.24N 119.09W
01/10/2023                   TULARE             CA   PUBLIC

            ROAD IS FLOODING IN THE AREA, CREEK PICKED
            UP A BUNCH OF DEBRIS AND IS NOW CLOGGING
            CULVERT CAUSING FLOODING.

&&

AS

Special weather statement, Jan 10, 3:45 PM PST, 19 minutes before

Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service San Joaquin Valley CA
345 PM PST Tue Jan 10 2023

CAZ312-319-320-327>329-110015-
Visalia - Porterville - Reedley CA-Kaiser to Rodgers Ridge CA-Fresno-
Tulare Foothills CA-Kings Canyon NP CA-Grant Grove Area CA-Fresno-
Tulare Lower Sierra CA-
345 PM PST Tue Jan 10 2023

...A strong thunderstorm will impact portions of northwestern Tulare
and east central Fresno Counties through 415 PM PST...

At 345 PM PST, Doppler radar was tracking a strong thunderstorm 19
miles northeast of Orange Cove, or 34 miles northeast of Visalia,
moving northeast at 30 mph.

HAZARD...Winds in excess of 40 mph and pea size hail.

SOURCE...Radar indicated.

IMPACT...Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around
         unsecured objects. Minor damage to outdoor objects is
         possible.

Locations impacted include...
Orange Cove, Grant Grove, Crystal Springs Campground, Big Meadows,
Pinehurst, Squaw Valley, Park Ridge, Azalea Campground, Sunset
Campground, Hume Lake and Grant Grove Visitor Center.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

If outdoors, consider seeking shelter inside a building.

&&

LAT...LON 3652 11922 3668 11935 3696 11888 3675 11871
TIME...MOT...LOC 2345Z 236DEG 26KT 3677 11902

MAX HAIL SIZE...0.25 IN
MAX WIND GUST...40 MPH

JMC

The office that day

Everything else NWS Hanford, CA issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jan 10, 4:13 PM PST	Special Weather Statement	HNX	Tulare	32 min
Jan 10, 4:21 PM PST	Special Weather Statement	HNX	Tulare	24 min
Jan 10, 4:49 PM PST	Tornado Warning	HNX	Tulare	26 min
Jan 10, 5:15 PM PST	Tornado Warning	HNX	Tulare	19 min
Jan 10, 5:35 PM PST	Special Weather Statement	HNX	Tulare	25 min
Jan 10, 6:01 PM PST	Special Weather Statement	HNX	Tulare	29 min
Jan 11, 9:00 AM PST	Areal Flood Warning	HNX	Mariposa, Merced	8 days
Jan 11, 1:07 PM PST	Winter Storm Watch	HNX	Fresno, Kern, Madera, Mariposa, Tulare, Tuolumne	24 hr

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in California, 2023 Every flash flood warning in 2023

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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.