Name: Lightning Strike in California, July 5, 2001
Start: 2001-07-05T14:34
End: 2001-07-05T14:34
Location: California

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
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: $2,000
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.

Lightning struck a cable line connected to a house, which then jumped to the metal roof flashing and started a fire along the roof eaves on the opposite side of the house. The resident was able to quickly douse the flames with a garden hose.

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 Jul 5, 1:15 PM PST, 1 hour 19 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 5, 1:15 PM PST, 1 hour 19 minutes before

EXTREME SOUTHWESTERN CALIFORNIA AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN DIEGO CA
215 PM PDT THU JUL 5 2001

                             ...SYNOPSIS...
TROPICAL CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE INTO SATURDAY AS THE MONSOONAL
FLOW CONTINUES. MOISTURE MOVING NORTHWARD WILL BRING A GOOD CHANCE
FOR SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS...WITH HEAVY RAIN POSSIBLE AT TIMES.
DRIER...LESS HUMID CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED SUNDAY.

                             ...DISCUSSION...

A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS FORMED OVER THE COASTAL WATERS AND EXTENDED
NORTHWARD INTO THE INLAND EMPIRE AND THE SBD COUNTY MTNS EARLY IN
THE AFTERNOON. THE ATMOSPHERE HAS BECOME EVEN MORE SATURATED THIS
AFTERNOON...AND WITH LITTLE CHANGE IN THE UPPER AIR PATTERN THE
TROPICAL CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE INTO SATURDAY. THE MCS THAT FORMED
LAST NIGHT OVER SOUTHERN AZ HAS REENERGIZED AND ITS MOISTURE
CONTINUES TO STREAM WESTWARD INTO CALIFORNIA. MOISTURE FROM
CONVECTION OVER THE MTNS OF BAJA IS ALSO ADVECTING NORTH THIS
AFTERNOON.

WATER VAPOR IMAGERY DETECTED A SHORT WAVE OVER CENTRAL BAJA THIS
AFTERNOON. THE MODELS TAKE THIS FEATURE NNW OVER THE COASTAL WATERS
TONIGHT AND FRIDAY. SOUTH WINDS AHEAD OF THIS UPPER LOW WILL
CONTINUE TO ADVECT MOISTURE INTO THE AREA...AND THERE WILL LIKELY BE
FAIR AMT OF CLOUDS THROUGH SATURDAY ALONG WITH INTERMITTENT SHOWERS.
HOWEVER...ANY AREAS THAT DO GET SUN WILL FURTHER DESTABILIZE THE
ATMOSPHERE AND TRIGGER THUNDERSTORMS...SOME OF WHICH WILL BE HEAVY
RAIN MAKERS. PRECIPITABLE WATER VALUES ARE FORECAST BETWEEN 1.75 TO
2.00 INCHES FROM TONIGHT ALL THE WAY INTO SATURDAY...AND ADDITIONAL
FLASH FLOOD WATCHES MAY BE NEEDED.

IN THE EXTENDED...DRIER SOUTHWEST FLOW IS FORECAST TO ARRIVE SUNDAY.
BUT THE TENUOUS NATURE OF THE POSITION OF THE UPPER HIGH OVER
COLORADO PUTS THE MOUNTAINS AND DESERTS ON THE BORDER OF ANY MOIST
SOUTHEAST FLOW. GIVEN THE STRENGTH OF THE UPPER RIDGE IN JULY THERE
SHOULD BE ENOUGH LINGERING MOISTURE AND WEAK SE FLOW TO WARRANT A
CHANCE FOR AFTERNOON CONVECTION IN THESE AREAS INTO NEXT WEEK.

.SAN...FLASH FLOOD WATCH UNTIL 6 PM FOR ZONES 55 AND 60...SEE FFASAN.

MOEDE

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.

Lightning, San Bernardino

When: July 5, 2:34 PM PST
Where: San Bernardino County, Apple Vly
Property damage: $2,000
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 34.841, -116.178 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Lightning: A lightning strike that killed, injured or caused damage.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in California in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in California, July 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: 5258009.