Hail, Orange
- When
- March 6, 2:38 AM PST to 3:17 AM PST
- Where
- Orange County, Tustin
- Measured
- 1.5 in hail
- Deaths
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Property damage
- $75,000
- Reported by
- LAW ENFORCEMENT
- Coordinates
- 33.733, -117.817
Hail in California, March 6, 2000
Hail ranging in diameter from the size of chick peas to golf balls, covered the ground to a depth of several inches. The Costa Mesa Freeway was closed for about 30 minutes.
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
- 1
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $75,000
- 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 SGX wrote it up.
Hail ranging in diameter from the size of chick peas to golf balls, covered the ground to a depth of several inches. The Costa Mesa Freeway was closed for about 30 minutes. One motorist died when he lost control of his vehicle and was broadsided by semi-tractor trailer.
The radar
The Santa Ana Mts radar (KSOX), 19 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 10:39 UTC.
Event by event
1 hail. Local standard time, as filed.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail, Orange | 2000-03-06 | 31 | Male | Vehicle/Towed Trailer | Direct |
What these are
- Hail
- Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Wildfire in South Dakota, March 6, 2000
- Flooding in California, March 6 to 7, 2000
- High Wind in California, March 6, 2000
- Wildfire in South Dakota, March 6, 2000
- Heavy Snow and Hail in Colorado, March 6 to 7, 2000
- Heavy Snow in Colorado, March 6 to 7, 2000
- High Wind in Alaska, March 6 to 7, 2000
- Dust Devil in Virginia, March 6, 2000
- Hail in California, March 6, 2000
More
Every storm in California in 2000Every state in 2000This day in weather historyWarnings in California, March 2000
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: 5136119.