Tornado, San Bernardino
- When
- May 18, 3:37 PM PST to 3:50 PM PST
- Where
- San Bernardino County, Apple Vly Arpt to 5 mi N of Apple Vly Arpt
- Rating
- F1
- Path length
- 3.5 mi
- Path width
- 100 yd
- Coordinates
- 34.600, -117.180
Tornadoes and Damaging Wind in California, May 18, 1997
A thunderstorm moving slowly from west to east, produced two tornadoes and a wet microburst north of the Apple Valley Airport. 5 mile path.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it. 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
- 0
- Injuries
- 1
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 3
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 SGX wrote it up.
A thunderstorm moving slowly from west to east, produced two tornadoes and a wet microburst north of the Apple Valley Airport. The first tornado moved through mostly open country, flattening a few out buildings along it's 3.5 mile path. The second formed as the first one dissipated, and continued moving east through Apple Valley, south of Waalew Road. Damage was sporadic as this twister was rather narrow and did not make contact with the ground continuously. Several power poles were blown down, small structures destroyed, and the roof was ripped off of a garage. Arcing power lines set several blazes which were quickly extinguished by fire fighters. A microburst followed, which ripped a 55 foot awning from a mobile home and blew it against a car, pinning, and slightly injuring a young girl.
The radar
The Edwards AFB radar (KEYX), 65 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 23:35 UTC.
Event by event
2 tornado, 1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Tornado, San Bernardino
- When
- May 18, 3:50 PM PST to 4:00 PM PST
- Where
- San Bernardino County, Apple Vly Arpt to 2 mi ENE of Apple Vly Arpt
- Rating
- F1
- Path length
- 9 mi
- Path width
- 40 yd
- Coordinates
- 34.600, -12.180
Thunderstorm Wind, San Bernardino
- When
- May 18, 4:10 PM PST to 4:15 PM PST
- Where
- San Bernardino County, 1 mi N of Apple Vly Arpt
- Measured
- 60 kt (69 mph)
- Injuries
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Coordinates
- 34.600, -117.180
What these are
- Tornado
- A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.
- Thunderstorm Wind
- Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Flash Flood and Hail in Arizona, May 18 to 20, 1997
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, May 18, 1997
- Tornado in Indiana, May 18, 1997
- Damaging Wind in Indiana, May 18, 1997
- Tornado in Indiana, May 18, 1997
- Tornado in Indiana, May 18, 1997
- Damaging Winds in Michigan, May 18, 1997
- Damaging Wind in Indiana, May 18, 1997
- Tornado and Damaging Wind in Illinois, May 18, 1997
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Ohio, May 18, 1997
- Hail in Kansas, May 18, 1997
- Damaging Wind in West Virginia, May 18, 1997
More
Every storm in California in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for California, 1997Warnings in California, May 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: 5599609, 5599610, 5599611.