California, 2001

Dust Storm in California, August 17, 2001

August 17, 2001 · NWS SGX · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

A gust front from thunderstorms over Southeast California moved northwest across the Imperial Valley and Salton Sea. The 30 mph winds caused a dust storm with visibility less than 1 mile over eastern San Diego County, the Coachella Valley, and in the Banning Pass.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 3 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

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
3

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 gust front from thunderstorms over Southeast California moved northwest across the Imperial Valley and Salton Sea. The 30 mph winds caused a dust storm with visibility less than 1 mile over eastern San Diego County, the Coachella Valley, and in the Banning Pass.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS San Diego, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 17, 1:50 AM PST, 3 hours 10 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 17, 1:50 AM PST, 3 hours 10 minutes before
EXTREME SOUTHWESTERN CALIFORNIA AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN DIEGO CA
250 AM PDT FRI AUG 17 2001

                             ...SYNOPSIS...

HIGH PRESSURE OVER SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA WILL CONTINUE HOT WEATHER
INLAND THROUGH THE END OF THE WEEK...WHILE THE SEA BREEZE KEEPS
COASTAL AREAS COOLER. SOME MOISTURE MAY RETURN OVER THE WEEKEND
AND BRING A CHANCE FOR THUNDERSTORMS TO THE MOUNTAINS AND DESERTS
SUNDAY AND MONDAY. THE HEAT IS EXPECTED TO DIMINISH EARLY NEXT WEEK
AS THE HIGH WEAKENS.

                             ...DISCUSSION...
MARINE LAYER DOWN TO 1000 FT DEEP FROM 1500 FT THU AM...BUT A WEAK
EDDY CONTINUES...AND BELIEVE WILL DEEPEN AGAIN TONIGHT...ALLOWING LOW
CLOUDS AND FOG TO GET TO THE WESTERN SAN AND OC VALLEYS.

595 UPPER HIGH OVER SCALIF TODAY...SHIFTING A LITTLE EAST SAT...FOR
NEAR RECORD WARMTH IN VALLEYS AND MTS. DESERT ZONE FORECASTED TEMPS
LOOK A LITTLE TOO WARM. PGRADS REMAIN ONSHORE...1000-850 THICKNESS
CHANGES LITTLE...MOS AROUND 111...AND WOULD NEED 116+ FOR RECORDS...
SO WILL REMOVE THAT HEADLINE.

MODELS IN LINE WITH MONSOON SURGE SUN AND MON AS UPPER LOW FORMS OFF
BAJA COAST AND SOUTHERLY FLOW DEVELOPS. FLOW AT MID LEVELS LIGHT SE.
700 MB RH 60-70% MTS AND DES. 30 KT SOUTHERLY SUBTROPICAL JET MAX
HAS LEFT FRONT QUAD OVER OUR AREA...WHICH PROMOTES AND EASTERLY WAVE
WITH +6 VVEL NEAR THE MEXICAN BORDER SUN EVE. SO CURRENT FORECAST ON
TRACK FOR TSTRM CHANCE MTS/DES AND PARTLY CLOUDY ELSEWHERE.

PACIFIC TROF BRINGS IN COOL DRY 582-585 SW FLOW FOR TUE...AND DEEPENS
THE MARINE LAYER...SO PRONOUNCED COOLING TREND TUE THRU FRI.

.SAN...MARINE WEATHER STATEMENT...SEE LAXMWSSAN.

MACKECHNIE

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

3 dust storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Dust Storm, C San Diego

When
August 17, 5:00 AM PST to 6:05 AM PST
Where
C San Diego forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
33.028, -116.770 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Dust Storm, X Sw San Bernardino

When
August 17, 5:50 AM PST to 7:45 AM PST
Where
X Sw San Bernardino forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
34.293, -116.086 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Dust Storm, C Riverside

When
August 17, 6:00 AM PST to 6:10 AM PST
Where
C Riverside forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
33.744, -115.994 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Dust Storm
Blowing dust that reduced visibility to a quarter mile or less.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in California in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in California, August 2001

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: 5263180, 5263182, 5263181.