Heavy Rain in California, September 3, 2001

Name: Heavy Rain in California, September 3, 2001
Start: 2001-09-03T07:42
End: 2001-09-03T19:30
Location: California

September 3, 2001 · NWS HNX · 5 events in 5 counties and zones

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 5

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 HNX wrote it up.

Sub-tropical moisture streamed over portions of Interior Central California during the 3rd. This prompted a Flash Flood Watch due to expected locally heavy rain in the Kern County Deserts and Mountains. Only small amounts of rain fell on the San Joaquin Valley floor but this did cause concern from agriculture during the crop harvest season. No damage was reported.

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 Hanford, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Sep 3, 1:40 AM PST, 6 hours 2 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Sep 3, 1:40 AM PST, 6 hours 2 minutes before

INTERIOR CENTRAL CALIFORNIA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY - HANFORD CA
240 AM PDT MON SEP 3 2001

MOUNTAIN/DESERT CONVECTION THAT FLARED UP SUNDAY AFTERNOON HAS
ENDED...BUT CONDITIONS REMAIN FAVORABLE FOR ANOTHER ROUND THIS
AFTERNOON. THE WEAK UPPER-LEVEL LOW WEST OF POINT CONCEPTION IS
SLOWLY MOVING EASTWARD...AND WAS LOCATED AT 34N/123W ON THE 0730Z
WATER-VAPOR IMAGE. THE 00Z ETA LOCATES THE LOW A BIT TOO FAR WEST...
WHILE THE NGM IS A BIT TO THE SOUTH. THE NGM LIFTS THE LOW RAPIDLY
INTO THE NORTHERN SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY BY 00Z TUESDAY...WHILE THE
SLOWER AND MORE SOUTHERLY ETA HAS THE LOW OVER POINT CONCEPTION.
THE LOW WILL CONTINUE TO DRAW MID-LEVEL TROPICAL MOISTURE INTO
SOUTHERN AND CENTRAL CALIFORNIA TODAY.

THE 06Z MESO-ETA FORECASTS CAPES OF 600+ J/KG OVER THE KERN COUNTY
DESERTS AND THE SOUTHERN SIERRA NEVADA NEAR THE FRESNO/MADERA COUNTY
LINE. THE MESO-ETA HAS WIDESPREAD 850-MB THETA-E VALUES OF 334+ K
OVER THE MOUNTAINS AND DESERTS...AND LIFTED INDICES OF -1 TO -2. IN
LIGHT OF SUNDAY/S ACTIVITY...WILL KEEP CHANCE POPS FOR THE MOUNTAINS
AND INCREASE DESERT POPS TO CHANCE CATEGORY FOR THIS AFTERNOON AND
EVENING. DYNAMICS MOVE MOSTLY EAST OF THE HANFORD WARNING/FORECAST
AREA TUESDAY...BUT REMAIN MARGINAL ALONG THE CREST. PER COORDINATION
WITH WFO LAS VEGAS...WILL GO WITH SLIGHT CHANCE POPS AT THE HIGHER
ELEVATIONS FROM YOSEMITE THROUGH TULARE COUNTY FOR DAY 2.

AREA OF CONCERN THIS MORNING IS THE THREAT OF ISOLATED HEAVY RAINFALL
FROM THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE MOUNTAINS THIS AFTERNOON. CIRCULATION
AROUND THE LOW MAY PREVENT STORMS FROM LINGERING OVER ONE LOCATION
LONG ENOUGH FOR PROLONGED HEAVY RAINFALL...ALTHOUGH THERE COULD BE
SOME ENTRAINMENT OVER FAVORED SLOPES. WILL ISSUE A SPECIAL WEATHER
STATEMENT FOR A CONVECTIVE OUTLOOK AND MENTION POSSIBILITY OF SOME
FLOODING IN FAVORED LOCATIONS.

TEMPERATURES WARMED 1-3 DEGREES ON AVERAGE SUNDAY...WITH COALINGA
HITTING THE CENTURY MARK. THE 00Z ETA HAS LITTLE CHANGE IN 850-MB
TEMPERATURES THROUGH 24 HOURS...WHILE THE AVN IS DOWN 1 DEGREE C.
BOTH MODELS FORECAST WARMING TUESDAY...WITH THE ETA UP 1 DEGREE C
AND THE AVN UP 2 DEGREES C. WILL GO WITH PERSISTENCE TEMPERATURES
TODAY...AND UP A DEGREE OR TWO TUESDAY.

FOR THE EXTENDED FORECAST PERIOD...THE AVN COOLS 850-MB TEMPERATURES
2 DEGREES C WEDNESDAY...THEN 2 DEGREES C WARMING DAILY THURSDAY AND
FRIDAY. WITH 850-MB TEMPERATURES HOVERING WITHIN A DEGREE C OF 23 C
FOR TUESDAY THROUGH THURSDAY...FAVOR NEAR-PERSISTENCE FOR DAYS 3...
THEN WARMING TREND THURSDAY INTO THE WEEKEND. THE EXTENDED FORECAST
LOOKS DRY THROUGH THE PERIOD.

POPS FAT BFL 000 YNP 442. SANGER

.HNX...NONE.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Sep 3, 2:22 AM PST, 5 hours 20 minutes before

CAZ095>099-032300-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...CONVECTIVE OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY - HANFORD CA
322 AM PDT MON SEP 3 2001

...SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS EXPECTED OVER THE HIGH SIERRA AND THE
KERN COUNTY MOUNTAINS AND DESERTS THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING...

A WEAK UPPER LEVEL LOW OFF THE CALIFORNIA COAST WILL CONTINUE
TO TRANSPORT MONSOONAL MOISTURE INTO THE REGION TODAY. COUPLED
WITH AFTERNOON HEATING...THIS MOISTURE WILL PROVIDE A BREEDING
GROUND FOR SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS...
AND ALSO THE KERN COUNTY DESERTS...THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING.

THUNDERSTORMS THAT POP UP LATER TODAY WILL BE SLOW MOVING WITH THE
POTENTIAL TO PRODUCE HEAVY RAIN AND LOCALIZED FLASH FLOODING.
SOME THUNDERSTORMS MAY ALSO BE ACCOMPANIED BY CLOUD TO GROUND
LIGHTNING...SMALL HAIL AND GUSTY WINDS.

PERSONS LIVING NEAR DRY WASHES AND CREEKS...OR IN AREAS OF STEEP
TERRAIN...SHOULD BE ON GUARD FOR LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN ACCOMPANYING
THUNDERSTORMS LATER TODAY.  THIS INCLUDES CAMPERS AND HIKERS OVER THE
HIGHER ELEVATIONS. IF YOU ARE NEAR A CREEK OR STREAM...OR OTHER FLOOD-
PRONE AREA...WATCH FOR RISING WATER AND BE PREPARED TO MOVE TO HIGHER
GROUND IF NECESSARY. EVEN IF IT IS NOT RAINING WHERE YOU ARE...HEAVY
RAIN OVER ADJACENT HIGHER TERRAIN CAN BRING WATER QUICKLY TO AREAS THAT
ARE VULNERABLE TO FLOODING.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...OR YOUR FAVORITE NEWS SOURCE...
FOR THE LATEST FORECASTS AND UPDATES.

DURFEE

Event by event

5 heavy rain. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Rain, Sw Sj Valley

When: September 3, 7:42 AM PST to 10:00 AM PST
Where: Sw Sj Valley forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Heavy Rain, E Central Sj Valley

When: September 3, 7:42 AM PST to 10:00 AM PST
Where: E Central Sj Valley forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Heavy Rain, Kern Cty Mtns

When: September 3, 12:35 PM PST to 7:30 PM PST
Where: Kern Cty Mtns forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Heavy Rain, Indian Wells Vly

When: September 3, 12:35 PM PST to 7:30 PM PST
Where: Indian Wells Vly forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Heavy Rain, Se Kern Cty Desert

When: September 3, 12:35 PM PST to 7:30 PM PST
Where: Se Kern Cty Desert forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

What these are

Heavy Rain: Rainfall totals unusual for the place and season that did not produce a flood.

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, September 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: 5266086, 5266087, 5266088, 5266089, 5266090.