Flood in California, March 22, 1997

Name: Flood in California, March 22, 1997
Start: 1997-03-22T17:15
End: 1997-03-22T17:45
Location: California

March 22, 1997 · NWS HNX · 1 event in 1 county or zone

2 inches of rain fell inside an hour. 85 inch in 1/2 hour) in the Bakersfield area of Kern County overcame the storm drain system and street flooding caused several businesses to become inundated.

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
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The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $150,000
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.

Rainfall amounts reported with the afternoon thunderstorms in the Fresno County area indicated 2.2 inches of rain fell inside an hour. Similar heavy rain (0.85 inch in 1/2 hour) in the Bakersfield area of Kern County overcame the storm drain system and street flooding caused several businesses to become inundated. Damage occurred to business inventory and buildings.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

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Event by event

1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flood, Kern

When: March 22, 5:15 PM PST to 5:45 PM PST
Where: Kern County, Bakersfield
Property damage: $150,000
Coordinates: 35.343, -118.730 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

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

Every storm in California in 1997 Every state in 1997 This day in weather history Warnings in California, March 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: 5596659.