Flash Flood, Sacramento
- When
- January 2, 12:00 PM PST to 10:00 PM PST
- Where
- Sacramento County, Wilton
- Deaths
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Property damage
- $2.4 million
- Coordinates
- 38.449, -121.344 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flash Flood in California, January 2, 1997
The heavy rains brought the Cosumnes River to record flows above designed limits for the protective levees. Twenty breaks occurred, with the largest near the town of Wilton in the southern end of the county.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 1
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $2.4 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 STO wrote it up.
The heavy rains brought the Cosumnes River to record flows above designed limits for the protective levees. Twenty breaks occurred, with the largest near the town of Wilton in the southern end of the county. The surging floodwaters inundated 33,000 acres of cropland and 84 homes. Emergency workers effected several roof-top and car-top rescues by boat and helicopter. The single death occurred at the Cosumnes River bridge near the town of McConnel.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
The people who died
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood, Sacramento | 1997-01-02 | 26 | Male | Vehicle/Towed Trailer | Direct |
What these are
- Flash Flood
- Flooding that begins within six hours of the rain that causes it, or of a dam or levee failure or ice jam release, often with deadly speed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Flash Flood in California, January 2 to 3, 1997
- Heavy Snow in Utah, January 2 to 3, 1997
- Dense Fog in Wisconsin, January 2, 1997
- Flash Flooding in California, January 2, 1997
- Flash Flooding in California, January 2, 1997
- Flood and Heavy Rain in Puerto Rico, January 2 to 3, 1997
- Flooding in Washington, January 2, 1997
- Flood in Hawaii, January 2, 1997
- Flood in Montana, January 2, 1997
- Heat in Alabama, January 2, 1997
- Lightning Strike in Washington, January 2, 1997
- Heavy Snow in Arizona, January 2 to 3, 1997
More
Every storm in California in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in California, January 1997
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: 5590338.