California, 2000

Heat in California, May 20 to 23, 2000

May 20 to 23, 2000 · NWS SGX · 1 event in 1 county or zone

A record setting heat wave resulted in the one death and the injury of three others from heat related ailments as they walked north through the mountainous region of San Diego County.

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
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  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
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The toll

Deaths
1
Injuries
3
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 SGX wrote it up.

A record setting heat wave resulted in the one death and the injury of three others from heat related ailments as they walked north through the mountainous region of San Diego County.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 heat. Local standard time, as filed.

Heat, San Diego County Mountains

When
May 20, 10:00 AM PST to May 23, 4:00 PM PST
Where
San Diego County Mountains forecast zone
Deaths
1 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries
3 direct, 0 indirect
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
33.028, -116.770 (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.

EventDateAgeSexWhereKind
Heat, San Diego County Mountains2000-05-2242MaleOutside/Open AreasDirect

What these are

Heat
Heat below excessive heat criteria that still caused deaths, injuries or significant impacts.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in California in 2000Every state in 2000This day in weather historyWarnings in California, May 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: 5143338.