Waterspout, Sonoma
- When
- January 4, 1:50 PM PST
- Where
- Sonoma County, Sonoma County
- Coordinates
- 38.525, -122.922 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
waterspourt observed off sonoma county coast
Flash Flooding and High Wind in California, January 4 to 25, 1998
3 high wind, 2 heavy rain, 2 flash flood, 1 waterspout, as filed by the National Weather Service.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 7 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
- 2
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $5,000
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 8
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 Sacramento radar (KDAX), 108 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 21:47 UTC.
Event by event
3 high wind, 2 heavy rain, 2 flash flood, 1 waterspout. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy Rain, Alameda
- When
- January 11, 9:00 AM PST
- Where
- Alameda County, Hayward
- Deaths
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Coordinates
- 37.651, -121.918 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
rain slick road and poor visibility caused auto accident
Flash Flood, Alameda
- When
- January 13, 10:00 AM PST
- Where
- Alameda County, Oakland
- Coordinates
- 37.651, -121.918 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
flooded basement at Whittier Elementary School
High Wind, San Francisco / San Mateo / Santa Cruz
- When
- January 18, 2:00 PM PST
- Where
- San Francisco / San Mateo / Santa Cruz forecast zone
- Measured
- 60 kt (69 mph)
- Property damage
- $5,000
- Coordinates
- 37.778, -122.442 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
carport roof was torn off its mooring at a mobile home park
Flash Flood, Alameda
- When
- January 19, 10:00 AM PST
- Where
- Alameda County, Berkeley
- Coordinates
- 37.651, -121.918 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
basement flooded
High Wind, San Francisco / San Mateo / Santa Cruz
- When
- January 19, 11:00 AM PST
- Where
- San Francisco / San Mateo / Santa Cruz forecast zone
- Measured
- 60 kt (69 mph)
- Coordinates
- 37.778, -122.442 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
wind gust knocked down a douglas fir tree on a pick up truck and damaged a garage, a wooden deck and a newly installed hot tub.
Heavy Rain, San Francisco
- When
- January 19, 12:00 PM PST
- Where
- San Francisco County, San Francisco
- Coordinates
- 37.778, -122.442 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
a vast sinkhole estimated at 12 feet deep swallowed up an entire lane of John Muir Drive between Skyline and Lake Merced
High Wind, X W Monterey
- When
- January 25, 9:00 AM PST
- Where
- X W Monterey forecast zone
- Measured
- 40 kt (46 mph)
- Deaths
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
huge waves swept a woman off the rocks
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heavy Rain, Alameda | 1998-01-11 | Male | Other | Direct | |
| High Wind, X W Monterey | 1998-01-25 | Female | Outside/Open Areas | Direct |
What these are
- Waterspout
- A tornado over water. One that moves ashore is filed as a tornado from the coastline on.
- Heavy Rain
- Rainfall totals unusual for the place and season that did not produce a flood.
- 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.
- 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
- Ice Storm in Kansas, January 4, 1998
- Flash Flooding in Arkansas, January 4 to 5, 1998
- Winter Storm in Oregon, January 4, 1998
- Ice Storm in Wisconsin, January 4 to 5, 1998
- Flash Flooding in Texas, January 4 to 5, 1998
- Ice Storm in Iowa, January 4, 1998
- Winter Storm in Utah, January 4 to 5, 1998
- Winter Weather in Vermont, January 4 to 6, 1998
- Winter Weather in New York, January 4 to 6, 1998
- Flash Flooding and Lightning Strike in Oklahoma, January 4 to 5, 1998
- Heavy Rain in Texas, January 4 to 5, 1998
- Flash Flooding and Damaging Winds in Oklahoma, January 4 to 5, 1998
More
Every storm in California in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in California, January 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: 5636124, 5636121, 5636123, 5636122, 5633952, 5633951, 5633953, 5633950.