Flood, Salinas Valley/Interior Monterey County/San Benito County
- When
- May 16, 12:30 AM PST to 4:50 PM PST
- Where
- Salinas Valley/Interior Monterey County/San Benito County forecast zone
- Property damage
- $5.0 million
Flood in California, May 16, 1996
Warm rain on top of snow brought large amounts of water off the mountains in Yosemite National Park (YNP). The resulting water surge put the Merced River above flood stage at the Sentinel Bridge in the Park.
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $5.0 million
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 1
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
What happened
The episode as NWS HNX wrote it up.
Warm rain on top of snow brought large amounts of water off the mountains in Yosemite National Park (YNP). The resulting water surge put the Merced River above flood stage at the Sentinel Bridge in the Park. Southern Sierra Nevada spotter 24-hour rainfall reports on the morning of Thursday, May 16, ranged from 2.0 - 2.5 inches. Snow levels were above 10,000 feet in the Southern Sierra Nevada which added to the rainfall runoff with snow melt. The Merced River crested at 12.0 feet which is 1.8 feet above the stage when minor flooding begins. Damage estimates are in the $2-3M range.
Event by event
1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
What these are
- Flood
- Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Flash Flood in West Virginia, May 16 to 17, 1996
- Flooding in Montana, May 16, 1996
- Damaging Wind in North Dakota, May 16, 1996
- Damaging Wind in North Dakota, May 16, 1996
- Damaging Wind in North Dakota, May 16, 1996
- Flash Flood in West Virginia, May 16 to 17, 1996
- Flash Flood in West Virginia, May 16 to 17, 1996
- Flood in Utah, May 16, 1996
- Damaging Wind in North Dakota, May 16, 1996
- Flash Flood in West Virginia, May 16, 1996
- Flash Flood in Ohio, May 16, 1996
- Flash Flood in West Virginia, May 16 to 17, 1996
More
Every storm in California in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in California, May 1996
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5580787.