Flash Flood, San Bernardino
- When
- July 12, 9:00 PM PST to 10:00 PM PST
- Where
- San Bernardino County, Lucerne Vly
- Property damage
- $30,000
- Reported by
- LAW ENFORCEMENT
- Coordinates
- 34.841, -116.178 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flash Flooding in California, July 12, 1999
Thunderstorms formed in a southwest to northeast band during the evening from the Lucerne Valley through the northwest part of the Twentynine Palms Marine Corps Training Center and across I-40 into the Devils Playground. 5 inches across the area.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 2 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
- 1
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $30,000
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 2
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 VEF wrote it up.
Thunderstorms formed in a southwest to northeast band during the evening from the Lucerne Valley through the northwest part of the Twentynine Palms Marine Corps Training Center and across I-40 into the Devils Playground. Estimated rainfall amounts ranged from 1.5 to 2.5 inches across the area. Law enforcement officials reported sections of road swept away along State Route 247 between Lucerne Valley and Landers. State Route 62 in the vicinity of Joshua Tree was also flooded in places as were other secondary roads.The most significant event occurred at approximately 10:20 p.m. PDT when flash flood waters caught a light armored vehicle on the Marine Corps training grounds and one man was thrown from the vehicle and swept away by the swift current. His body was found shortly thereafter and he was later pronounced dead at the base hospital.
The radar
The Edwards AFB radar (KEYX), 129 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 04:59 UTC.
Event by event
2 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Flash Flood, San Bernardino
- When
- July 12, 9:22 PM PST
- Where
- San Bernardino County, 10 mi N of Twenty Nine Palms
- Deaths
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 34.841, -116.178 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood, San Bernardino | 1999-07-12 | 21 | Male | Vehicle/Towed Trailer | Direct |
What these are
- 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.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Flood in California, July 12, 1999
- Hail and Damaging Wind in North Dakota, July 12, 1999
- Flash Flood in California, July 12, 1999
- Tornado and Damaging Wind in Texas, July 12, 1999
- Flood in California, July 12, 1999
- Flash Flood in California, July 12, 1999
- Damaging Wind and Lightning Strike in California, July 12, 1999
- Hail in Montana, July 12, 1999
- Hail and Damaging Wind in Florida, July 12, 1999
- Lightning Strike in Georgia, July 12, 1999
- Tornado in California, July 12, 1999
- Lightning Strike in Texas, July 12, 1999
More
Every storm in California in 1999Every state in 1999This day in weather historyWarnings in California, July 1999
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: 5715735, 5715736.