High Wind, Central San Joaquin Valley
- When
- February 3, 8:25 AM PST to 4:00 PM PST
- Where
- Central San Joaquin Valley forecast zone
- Measured
- 50 kt (58 mph)
High Wind in California, February 3, 1998
especially for Fresno County. with numerous autos and houses damaged in Selma by downed trees at 0855 PST.
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.
What happened
The episode as NWS HNX wrote it up.
Much like the Southern San Joaquin Valley but not quite as widespread, high wind in the Central San Joaquin Valley was also experienced...especially for Fresno County. Trees were uprooted in the Caruthers, Riverdale, and Easton areas at 0825 PST...with numerous autos and houses damaged in Selma by downed trees at 0855 PST. Powerlines were downed by felled trees causing power outages...over 22,000 electric customers in Fresno County were without power due to the high wind with several roads also closed due to wind-downed obstructions. The highest wind at the Fresno ASOS was a southeast wind gust to 37 Kts at 0949 PST. Some wind damage was still being reported at 1600 PST in the Clovis area. This gradient high wind episode accompanied the occurrence on 2/3/98 of the lowest Fresno February sea level pressure reading of 29.26" Hg eclipsing the old record of 29.32" Hg set in 1981.
Event by event
1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
What these are
- High Wind
- Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Heavy Snow in Kentucky, February 3 to 6, 1998
- Heavy Snow in Kentucky, February 3 to 6, 1998
- Heavy Rain in West Virginia, February 3 to 4, 1998
- Ice Storm in Nebraska, February 3, 1998
- Flood in California, February 3 to 21, 1998
- Winter Storm in West Virginia, February 3 to 6, 1998
- Winter Storm in North Carolina, February 3 to 6, 1998
- Heavy Snow in Tennessee, February 3 to 4, 1998
- Heavy Snow in Kentucky, February 3 to 6, 1998
- Flood in California, February 3, 1998
- High Wind in Nevada, February 3, 1998
- Flash Flooding and Heavy Snow in North Carolina, February 3 to 4, 1998
More
Every storm in California in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in California, February 1998
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: 5638961.