High Wind in California, December 15, 2001

Name: High Wind in California, December 15, 2001
Start: 2001-12-15T14:30
End: 2001-12-15T18:45
Location: California

December 15, 2001 · NWS SGX · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

Power lines were blown down between Romoland and Homeland in Riverside County, affecting 2400 customers. In Rialto, sustained winds of 40 mph were measured.

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.

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Winter weather
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The toll

Deaths: 0
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 SGX wrote it up.

Power lines were blown down between Romoland and Homeland in Riverside County, affecting 2400 customers. In Rialto, sustained winds of 40 mph were measured.

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 Dec 15, 2:00 PM PST, 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 15, 2:00 PM PST, 30 minutes before

EXTREME SOUTHWESTERN CALIFORNIA AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN DIEGO CA
200 PM PST SAT DEC 15 2001

.SYNOPSIS...A DEVELOPING OFFSHORE FLOW WILL BRING STRONG GUSTY
NORTHEAST WIND TO THE MOUNTAINS AND AREAS BELOW CANYONS AND PASSES
THROUGH SUNDAY WITH THE WIND DIMINSHING DURING THE AFTERNOON ON
SUNDAY. HIGH PRESSURE WILL BRING DRY WEATHER THROUGH MONDAY WITH A
LITTLE WARMER DAYS. CONTINUED COOL AT NIGHT...ESPECIALLY IN THE WIND
SHELTERED AREAS...THROUGH MONDAY.

.DISCUSSION...DECIDED TO START OUT WITH A HIGH WIND WARNING FOR THE
INLAND EMPIRE AND FOR THE SANTA ANA MOUNTAINS AND FOOTHILLS.  WILL
KEEP THE WIND ADVISORY IN PLACE FOR THE REMAINING MOUNTAIN AREAS
INCLUDING THE SAN DIEGO COUNTY MOUNTAINS AND INCLUDE THE ORANGE
COUNTY COASTAL AREAS IN THE WIND ADVISORY AREA.  THE RAWS STATION AT
FREMONT CANYON IS ALREADY SHOWING SUSTAINED WIND AROUND 25 MPH WITH
GUSTS BETWEEN 35 AND 40 MPH AND SHOULD CONTINUE TO INCREASE THROUGH
THE AFTERNOON. THE WIND AT KSBD...SAN BERNARDINO INTERNATIONAL
AIRPORT...FORMERLY NORTON AFB...IS NORTH SUSTAINED AT 24 MPH WITH
GUSTS TO 32 MPH WHICH WOULD INDICATE SOME STRONGER WIND NEARBY.

SURFACE PRESSURE GRADIENTS HAVE NOT CHANGED MUCH OVER THE PAST FEW
HOURS BUT EXPECT A STRONGER TREND TOWARDS OFFSHORE LATER TONIGHT AND
EARLY SUNDAY TO REINFORCE THE WIND.

SOME CU HAS DEVELOPED OVER THE MOUNTAINS THIS AFTERNOON IN RESPONSE
TO SOME UPSLOPE WIND ON THE NORTHEAST SIDE BUT THE CU HAS NOT SHOWN
ANY VERTICLE DEVELOPMENT.

RIDGING THROUGH MONDAY WILL KEEP A MOSTLY CLEAR SKY OVER THE CWFA
WITH SOME INCREASE IN DAYTIME TEMPERATURES...ESPECIALLY WEST OF THE
MOUNTAINS WITH THE OFFSHORE FLOW.

MODELS INDICATE THE RIDGE WILL FLATTEN ON MONDAY AS A S/WV TROUGH
SLIDES INTO THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST. THIS S/WV THEN SLIDES SOUTHEAST
BRUSHING BY THE CWFA ON TUESDAY AS AN INSIDE SLIDER. MAIN IMPACT
WILL BE SOME CLOUDS OVER THE MOUNTAINS AND SOME BREEZY CONDITIONS
BEHIND THE S/WV. A SECOND S/WV FOLLOWES FOR THURSDAY AND FRIDAY. MRF
SUGGEST THIS S/WV WILL ALSO BE DRY BUT IT APPEARS TO BE COLDER
SYSTEM AND DIGGING FURTHER SOUTH THAN THE ONE ON TUESDAY...WITH AN
UPPER LOW OVER SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA THURSDAY NIGHT AND FRIDAY. BASED
ON THIS WILL HANG ONTO THE IDEA OF SOME SHOWERS IN THE AREA THURSDAY
AND FRIDAY.  BREEZY BUT DRY BEHIND THIS S/WV FOR SATURDAY.

.SAN...HIGH WIND WARNING...WIND ADVISORY...SEE LAXNPWSAN.

HORTON

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, X Sw San Bernardino

When: December 15, 2:30 PM PST to 5:00 PM PST
Where: X Sw San Bernardino forecast zone
Measured: 35 kt (40 mph)
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 34.293, -116.086 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, W Riverside T X Nw

When: December 15, 6:45 PM PST
Where: W Riverside T X Nw forecast zone
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph)
Property damage: $30,000
Reported by: NEWSPAPER

What these are

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

Every storm in California in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in California, December 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: 5274839, 5274838.