California, 2001

High Wind in California, June 3, 2001

June 3, 2001 · NWS SGX · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

Several power poles were blown down in North Palm Springs early Sunday morning below the canyon leading up to the Aerial Tramway. Power outages affected 1,200 customers between Palm Springs and Rainbow.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 2 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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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$60,000
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.

Several power poles were blown down in North Palm Springs early Sunday morning below the canyon leading up to the Aerial Tramway. Power outages affected 1,200 customers between Palm Springs and Rainbow. Frequent wind gusts over 40 mph occurred through the day and into the night along the east slopes of the mountains in Riverside and San Diego counties.

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 Jun 3, 1:25 AM PST, 5 hours 35 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 3, 1:25 AM PST, 5 hours 35 minutes before
EXTREME SOUTHWESTERN CALIFORNIA AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN DIEGO CA
225 AM PDT SUN JUN 3 2001

                             ...SYNOPSIS...
A WEAK UPPER LEVEL TROUGH HAS PRODUCED A DEEP MARINE LAYER AND
EXTENSIVE CLOUD COVER WEST OF THE MOUNTAINS. MORNING CLOUDS WILL
CLEAR IN SOME AREAS THIS AFTERNOON. GUSTY WINDS OVER THE MOUNTAINS
AND DESERTS WILL SUBSIDE THIS MORNING...BUT INCREASE AGAIN THIS
AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. A WARMING TREND IS EXPECTED TUESDAY AND
WEDNESDAY AS HIGH PRESSURE BUILDS OVER THE REGION.

                            ...DISCUSSION...
BREAKING UP OF STRATUS DECK OVER THE INNER COASTAL WATERS ATTRIBUTED
TO TEMPORARY RIDGING/SUBSIDENCE BEHIND EXITING SHORT WAVE MOVING
ACROSS ARIZONA. WINDS AROUND POINT CONCEPTION STILL NW 25-35 KTS SO
EXPECT EDDY CIRCULATION WILL DOMINATE AND FILL IN THE SUCKER HOLES
BEFORE MORNING IS OUT. ANOTHER SHORT WAVE IS DROPPING EAST SOUTHEAST
ACROSS NORTHERN GREAT BASIN. MOSTLY CHANNEL FLOW WITH THIS SYSTEM
AND IT SKIRTS BY TO THE NORTH OF AREA. WILL STILL BE CLOSE ENOUGH
TO CAUSE INCREASE WINDS AGAIN THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT OVER THE
MOUNTAINS AND DESERTS...BUT BRING LITTLE OR NO ADDITIONAL COOLING TO
REGION. NET EFFECT IS TO DELAY BUILDING OF RIDGE ANOTHER 24 HOURS.
THUS HAVE CUT BACK ON CLEARING AND LOWERED MAXIMUM TEMPERATURE
FORECASTS TO SHOW NO OR ONLY A FEW DEGREES WARMING ON MONDAY.

IN THE EXTENDED...RIDGE BUILDS TUESDAY/WEDNESDAY OVER SOUTHERN
CALIFORNIA THEN SHIFTS EAST TO FOUR CORNERS REGION FOR THURSDAY
THROUGH SATURDAY. WILL LEAVE DAYS 3 THROUGH 7 GROUPED TOGETHER FOR
NOW. DAY SHIFT PICKS UP NEXT SUNDAY IN THE AFTERNOON PACKAGE AND MAY
WANT TO BREAK OUT LAST PART OF WEEK/NEXT WEEKEND TO SHOW SOME
INCREASE IN CLOUDS AND A COOLING TREND FOR INLAND AREAS. POPS STILL
IN SINGLE DIGITS.

SAN -00

.SAN...NONE.

BALFOUR

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, C Riverside

When
June 3, 7:00 AM PST
Where
C Riverside forecast zone
Measured
60 kt (69 mph)
Property damage
$60,000
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
33.744, -115.994 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, San Diego T X W

When
June 3, 10:07 PM PST
Where
San Diego T X W forecast zone
Measured
53 kt (61 mph)
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates
33.028, -116.770 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

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

More

Every storm in California in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in California, June 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: 5252032, 5252033.