Waterspout in California, November 10, 1997

Name: Waterspout in California, November 10, 1997
Start: 1997-11-10T15:45
End: 1997-11-10T16:00
Location: California

November 10, 1997 · NWS SGX · 1 event in 1 county or zone

1 waterspout, as filed by the National Weather Service.

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

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The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
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.

The radar

The Santa Ana Mts radar (KSOX), 20 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 23:42 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 waterspout. Local standard time, as filed.

Waterspout, Orange

When: November 10, 3:45 PM PST to 4:00 PM PST
Where: Orange County, Newport Beach
Coordinates: 33.677, -117.776 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Unstable conditions in the wake of a cool front helped to spawn a waterspout off of Newport Beach. The waterspout came ashore at the Newport Pier and quickly dissipated over western Costa Mesa, causing minor power outages. Little damage, and no injuries were reported, although one fisherman was blown from one end of the pier to another. Winds were estimated at 60 to 70 mph.

What these are

Waterspout: A tornado over water. One that moves ashore is filed as a tornado from the coastline on.

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, November 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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5620203.