Name: Flood in California, March 4 to 5, 2001
Start: 2001-03-04T17:00
End: 2001-03-05T02:00
Location: California

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
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 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 Eureka, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 4, 2:30 PM PST, 2 hours 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 4, 2:30 PM PST, 2 hours 30 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EUREKA CA
230 PM PST SUN MAR 4 2001

A 990 MB SURFACE LOW JUST OFFSHORE OF CAPE MENDOCINO IS EXPECTED TO
MOVE NORTHWEST BACK OUT TO SEA. THIS IS DUE TO A STONG JET STREAK
CURRENTLY DROPPING INTO THE UPSTREAM SIDE OF THE TROUGH AXIS. THIS
WILL BRING AN OFFSHORE DRYING BUT WEAKENING FLOW TO THE NORTHERN
HALF OF THE CWA AND BRING AN END TO THE PRECIP BY EARLY MONDAY.
SHOWERS WILL CONTINUE IN ERNEST OVER MENDOCINO COUNTY UNTIL THE LOW
PULLS FAR ENOUGH AWAY FROM LAND WHICH WONT BE UNTIL LATE TONIGHT. A
SECONDARY LOW ASSOCIATED WITH THE JET MAX IS GETTING BETTER
ORGANIZED NEAR 35N 132W BUT SHOULD NOT PROVIDE ANY INCLEMENT WEATHER
TO THE CWA AS IT TAKES AIM AT SOUTH-CENTRAL CALIFORNIA. SNOW LEVELS
CONTINUE TO REMAIN NEAR 4000 FEET AND HAVE ALLOWED SNOW WARNING TO
EXPIRE AS PRECIP GETS CUT OFF. SOME LOCATIONS MAY SEE A FEW MORE
INCHES OF ACCUMULATION THIS EVENING BEFORE THINGS TAPER OFF. THE
WIND IS STILL FAIRLY STRONG OVER MENDOCINO COUNTY BUT FEEL AS LOW
CONTINUES NORTHWARD TRAJECTORY WHILE FILLING THE SPEEDS WILL
DECREASE RATHER QUICKLY THIS EVENING. HAVE THEREFORE ALLOWED WIND
ADVISORY TO EXPIRE. HAVE BACKED OFF CONSIDERABLY ON POPS FOR MONDAY
AS MOST OF THE DYNAMICS WITH THE TROUGH WILL SHIFT SOUTH IN RESPONSE
TO THE DIGGING JET. GALE WARNING ALLOWED TO CONTINUE IN SOUTHERN
WATERS THIS EVENING AS GRADIENT REMAINS STRONG ENOUGH TO KEEP BUOYS
RIGHT NEAR CRITERIA LEVELS. HEAVY SURF ADVISORY DROPPED AS IT
APPEARS MOST OF THE LARGEST SWELL WILL STAY SOUTH. IN ADDITION MOST
OF THE LARGER SEAS ARE BEING PRODUCED BY LOCALLY GENERATED SHORT PERIOD
SWELL.

EXTENDED...THE CURRENT WEST COAST TROUGH IS GOING TO BE A SLOW
MOVER. IT IS EXPECTED TO REMAIN HUNG UP ALONG SOUTHERN CAL THROUGH
LATE TUE WHILE NW CAL REMAINS IN A STABLE REGIME. BY WEDNESDAY A
SHORTWAVE DROPS OUT OF NW FLOW WITH THE AVN/MRF PRODUCING A CUT OFF
LOW WHICH WAFFLES OFF OF THE CALIFORNIA COAST FOR SEVERAL DAYS.
THEREFORE HAVE BROADBRUSHED EXTENDED AFTER THU WITH CHANCE OF RAIN.

POPS CEC 4000 EKA 5000 UKI 8400.

.EKA...GALE WARNING CAPE MENDOCINO TO PT ARENA OUT TO 60 NM THIS   R
    EVEING.
    ...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY PT ST GEORGE TO CAPE MENDOCINO OUT TO 60
    NM TONIGHT.

RMG

Event by event

1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flood, Mendocino Interior

When: March 4, 5:00 PM PST to March 5, 2:00 AM PST
Where: Mendocino Interior forecast zone
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER

Minor flooding along Russian River near Hopland and in the Talmage area near Ukiah.

What these are

Flood: Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.

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, March 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: 5236433.