A High Wind Warning was issued for ORZ021/022 at 1424 PST on 11/30/01, restricted to the headlands at 2225 PST on 11/30/01, and cancelled at 0430 PST on 12/01/01. The above observation verified the warning, and it is evident that this warning should not have been limited to the headlands.
Every event with a place to put it; 5 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
The episode as NWS MFR wrote it up.
A High Wind Warning was issued for ORZ021/022 at 1424 PST on 11/30/01, restricted to the headlands at 2225 PST on 11/30/01, and cancelled at 0430 PST on 12/01/01. The above observation verified the warning, and it is evident that this warning should not have been limited to the headlands. In addition, Cape Blanco exceeded warning criteria continuously (except for one observation) from 1100 PST on 11/30/01 to 0300 PST on 12/01/01. The Cape Blanco peak gust of 93 mph was the highest of the season to that point in the Medford CWA. However, this warning was cancelled a bit prematurely, as winds at Cape Blanco increased once again and exceeded High Wind Warning criteria from 0600 to 1400 PST on 12/1/01.
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 Medford, OR wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Nov 30, 10:14 PM PST, 2 hours 46 minutes earlier.
SOUTHWEST OREGON/NORTHERN CALIFORNIA FORECAST DISCUSSION...CORRECTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEDFORD OR
900 PM PDT FRI NOV 30 2001
CORRECTED HEADLINES TO INCLUDE 027 IN ADVISORY
LATEST MODEL DATA AND ANALYSES SUPPORT A NEEDED UPDATE TO REVISE
FORECASTS AND HEADLINES. AN OCCLUDING UPPER LEVEL LOW NEAR 48N/135W
AND ASSOCIATED FRONTAL SYSTEM IS CURRENTLY BEARING DOWN ON THE
NORTHWEST CARRIED BY A WESTERLY 125KT UPPER JET INTO OREGON. SOME
WEAK WARM FRONTAL OVERUNNING IS APPARENT TO OUR SOUTH AND SOUTHEAST
IN ENHANCED REGION DISPLAYED ON SATELLITE...BUT OVERUNNING WONT BE
THE CHIEF INGREDIENT TONIGHT FOR SNOW. AT THIS POINT IT APPEARS SNOW
AND RAIN WILL BE DRIVEN MAINLY BY OROGRAPHICS. MEDFORD IS CURRENTLY
DOWNSLOPING AS IS THE SHASTA VALLEY AND POPS TONIGHT WILL BE SCALED
BACK IN THESE ZONES.
WILL REVISE FORECAST TO ACCOUNT FOR MORE SNOW OVER UPSLOPE-PRONE
AREAS OF SISKIYOU COUNTY...MAINLY THE SHASTA AREA...TO SCALE BACK ON
SNOW AMOUNTS OVER SOME EAST SIDE AREAS...AND LASTLY TO INTRODUCE A
HIGH WIND WARNING FOR ZONE 031. CURRENT HIGH WIND WARNING AT THE
COAST IS VERIFYING BASED ON CAPE BLANCO OBSERVATIONS...BUT OTHER
AREAS INCLUDING BROOKINGS...NORTH BEND...AND THE MAJORITY OF THE
INLAND COASTAL ZONES APPEAR AT A MINIMUM RISK FOR WARNING-TYPE WINDS.
SO WILL CROP THE COASTAL WIND WARNING TO JUST THE HEADLANDS.
INCOMING 50 TO 70 KT MID LEVEL JET BETWEEN 800 AND 700 MB WILL
THREATEN THE SUMMER LAKE/PAISLEY AREA IN ZONE 031. SNOW POTENTIAL LOW
SO WILL DROP THEIR WINTER HEADLINE AND INTRODUCE A HIGH WIND WARNING
FOR GUSTS TO 60-70 MPH POSSIBLE LATER TONIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY
MORNING. ALMOST THE SAME STORY FOR THE SHASTA VALLEY INCLUDING WEED
AND YREKA...DOWNSLOPING HINDERS SNOW...BUT WINDS WILL BE OK.
THEREFORE WILL REVISE THERE FOR ONLY A WIND ADVISORY TONIGHT THROUGH
SATURDAY MORTING.
SNOW TOTALS EXPECTED AT MOUNT SHASTA AND THE SOUTHERN MOUNTAINS OF
ZONE 080 SUPPORT ISSUING A WINTER STORM WARNING THERE. SOME GUIDANCE
SUGGESTS THEY WILL CHANGE TO RAIN AT SOME POINT TOMORROW...BUT NOT
LIKELY. UPSLOPE SNOW CONTINUES THERE UNTIL NEXT SYSTEM ARRIVES SUNDAY
WHICH SHOULD YIELD ANOTHER HEAVY SNOW HEADLINE. THEREFORE WILL HAVE
TO ISSUE A WATCH FOR THE CA ZONES THAT AREA SUNDAY. EAST SIDE OREGON
AREAS APPEAR AT RISK ALSO ON SUNDAY FOR HEAVY SNOW...BUT MODEL
DIFFERENCES LEAVE THAT IN QUESTION. STAY TUNED.
A COUPLE MORE ITEMS...WILL DROP THE ADVISORY FOR THE TULELAKE AREA
WHERE SNOW AMOUNTS WILL BE WEAK AND WINDS WILL STRUGGLE TO MEET
CRITERIA. KLAMATH FALLS WILL LIKELY NOT SEE MUCH EITHER...BUT FEEL
CHILOQUIN MAY...SO WILL LEAVE HEADLINE ALONE THERE. EAST SIDE SNOW
THREAT SHOULD BE MAINLY ALONG THE HIGHEST TERRAIN FROM CRESCENT TO
LAKEVIEW AND THE WARNERS.
.MFR...STORM WARNING FLORENCE OREGON TO PT ST GEORGE CALIFORNIA.
HEAVY SURF ADVISORY ORZ021/022.
HIGH WIND WARNING TONIGHT-SATURDAY MORNING COASTAL HEADLANDS
AND ORZ031.
WIND ADVISORY TONIGHT AND SATURDAY MORNING CAZ081.
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY TONIGHT-SATURDAY ORZ027>031 AND
CAZ083-085.
WINTER STORM WARNING TONIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY CAZ080-081 ABOVE
3500 FEET.
WINTER STORM WATCH SUNDAY CAZ080>085.The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
5 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Cape Blanco recorded a peak sustained speed of 65 mph.
Cape Blanco recorded a peak gust of 93 mph.
Spotter CU10 near Cape Ferrelo reported winds 39-54 gusting to 70 mph with numerous downed tree limbs and power outages.
Cape Arago recorded a peak wind gust of 74 mph.
Spotter CO41 just south of Bandon reported a wind gust to 73 mph overnight.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Oregon in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Oregon, December 2001
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: 5274540, 5274541, 5274537, 5274539, 5274538.