Lightning Strike in Oregon, May 24, 2001

Name: Lightning Strike in Oregon, May 24, 2001
Start: 2001-05-24T17:30
End: 2001-05-24T17:30
Location: Oregon

May 24, 2001 · NWS PDT · 1 event in 1 county or zone

1 lightning, as filed by the National Weather Service.

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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $40,000
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 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 Pendleton, OR wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 24, 1:30 PM PST, 4 hours earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 24, 1:30 PM PST, 4 hours before

NORTHEAST OREGON/SOUTHEAST WASHINGTON FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OR
230 PM PDT THU MAY 24 2001

LIFTED INDICES ON THE GOES SOUNDER AT 1900Z WERE 0 TO -5 OVER THE EASTERN THIRD
OF OREGON AND 0 TO 5 ELSEWHERE OVER THE FORECAST AREA. CU HAS BEEN DEVELOPING
OVER CENTRAL OREGON...THE BLUES...AND THE WALLOWAS...BUT THE CLOUDS ARE
SHEARING OFF IN THE EAST WHERE THE GOES DATA INDICATES THE MOST INSTABILITY.
MESOETA MODEL FORECAST SOUNDINGS SHOW CAPE VALUES THIS AFTERNOON RANGING FROM
600 40 MILES SOUTH OF RDM TO 2200 J/KG OVER THE WALLOWAS...INDICATING THE
POTENTIAL FOR DESTABILIZATION IN THE ATMOSPHERE THIS EVENING. A FEW LIGHTNING
STRIKES HAVE OCCURRED OVER THE SE CORNER OF OREGON.

THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP ACROSS THE BLUES AND WALLOWAS. THE
BIGGEST THREAT WILL BE HAIL AND GUSTY WINDS. SOME STORMS MAY ALSO OCCUR OVER
CENTRAL OREGON...THE FOOTHILLS OF THE BLUES...AND OVER THE EASTERN PART OF THE
COLUMBIA BASIN.

AT 1 PM TEMPERATURES WERE 1 TO 11 DEGREES COOLER THAN YESTERDAY. THIS
INDICATES COOLER AIR IS BEGINNING TO MOVE INTO THE COLUMBIA BASIN. TEMPERATURES
AT 850 ARE FORECAST TO BE SIMILAR TOMORROW BUT THICKNESS DECREASE 40 TO 100
METERS. THIS INDICATES THE COOLING TREND WILL CONTINUE FOR OVERNIGHT LOWS ABOUT
5 DEGREES COOLER THAN TODAY.

A FEW SHOWERS WILL OCCUR FRIDAY IN THE LINGERING MOISTURE AND INSTABILITY
ENHANCED BY DAY TIME HEATING OVER THE MOUNTAINS. HOWEVER A MUCH BETTER CHANCE
FOR PRECIPITATION WILL BE SATURDAY WHEN AN UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE MOVES
THROUGH. SHOWERS AND POSSIBLY THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP OVER THE LOWER
COLUMBIA BASIN AND ALL OF THE OREGON FORECAST AREA.
COONFIELD

IN THE EXTENDED...MODELS ALL COMING INTO LINE INDICATING A DECENT
UPPER LEVEL WAVE AND SURFACE COLD FRONT TO MOVE ACROSS THE AREA
SUNDAY.  THIS FRONT SHOULD BE ABLE TO TAP RESIDUAL MOISTURE LEFT
OVER FROM SATURDAYS CONVECTION FOR A CONTINUED CHANCE OF SHOWERS
MOST AREAS.  MAY ALSO BE ENOUGH LINGERING INSTABILITY FOR A FEW
THUNDERSTORMS IN THE FAR EAST.  UPSLOPE WESTERLY FLOW MONDAY MAY
KEEP SOME SHOWERS GOING OVER THE EAST SIDE OF THE CWFA...OTHERWISE
EXPECT DRY CONDITIONS.  BEYOND MONDAY...MODELS INDICATE A DIRTY...
FLAT RIDGE OVER THE AREA FOR DRY AND MORE SEASONAL CONDITIONS.  GKH

PDT 220  ALW 220  PSC 110  YKM 000

.KPDT...WSR-88D...VCP21/CSR21...OPERATIONAL.

.KPDT...NONE.

@RUKWBCe6KDENFXUS66 KPDT 242153
AFDPDT
NORTHEAST OREGON/SOUTHEAST WASHINGTON FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OR
230 PM PDT THU MAY 24 2001

LIFTED INDICES ON THE GOES SOUNDER AT 1900Z WERE 0 TO -5 OVER THE EASTERN THIRD
OF OREGON AND 0 TO 5 ELSEWHERE OVER THE FORECAST AREA. CU HAS BEEN DEVELOPING
OVER CENTRAL OREGON...THE BLUES...AND THE WALLOWAS...BUT THE CLOUDS ARE
SHEARING OFF IN THE EAST WHERE THE GOES DATA INDICATES THE MOST INSTABILITY.
MESOETA MODEL FORECAST SOUNDINGS SHOW CAPE VALUES THIS AFTERNOON RANGING FROM
600 40 MILES SOUTH OF RDM TO 2200 J/KG OVER THE WALLOWAS...INDICATING THE
POTENTIAL FOR DESTABILIZATION IN THE ATMOSPHERE THIS EVENING. A FEW LIGHTNING
STRIKES HAVE OCCURRED OVER THE SE CORNER OF OREGON.

THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP ACROSS THE BLUES AND WALLOWAS. THE
BIGGEST THREAT WILL BE HAIL AND GUSTY WINDS. SOME STORMS MAY ALSO OCCUR OVER
CENTRAL OREGON...THE FOOTHILLS OF THE BLUES...AND OVER THE EASTERN PART OF THE
COLUMBIA BASIN.

AT 1 PM TEMPERATURES WERE 1 TO 11 DEGREES COOLER THAN YESTERDAY. THIS
INDICATES COOLER AIR IS BEGINNING TO MOVE INTO THE COLUMBIA BASIN. TEMPERATURES
AT 850 ARE FORECAST TO BE SIMILAR TOMORROW BUT THICKNESS DECREASE 40 TO 100
METERS. THIS INDICATES THE COOLING TREND WILL CONTINUE FOR OVERNIGHT LOWS ABOUT
5 DEGREES COOLER THAN TODAY.

A FEW SHOWERS WILL OCCUR FRIDAY IN THE LINGERING MOISTURE AND INSTABILITY
ENHANCED BY DAY TIME HEATING OVER THE MOUNTAINS. HOWEVER A MUCH BETTER CHANCE
FOR PRECIPITATION WILL BE SATURDAY WHEN AN UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE MOVES
THROUGH. SHOWERS AND POSSIBLY THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP OVER THE LOWER
COLUMBIA BASIN AND ALL OF THE OREGON FORECAST AREA.
COONFIELD

IN THE EXTENDED...MODELS ALL COMING INTO LINE INDICATING A DECENT
UPPER LEVEL WAVE AND SURFACE COLD FRONT TO MOVE ACROSS THE AREA
SUNDAY.  THIS FRONT SHOULD BE ABLE TO TAP RESIDUAL MOISTURE LEFT
OVER FROM SATURDAYS CONVECTION FOR A CONTINUED CHANCE OF SHOWERS
MOST AREAS.  MAY ALSO BE ENOUGH LINGERING INSTABILITY FOR A FEW
THUNDERSTORMS IN THE FAR EAST.  UPSLOPE WESTERLY FLOW MONDAY MAY
KEEP SOME SHOWERS GOING OVER THE EAST SIDE OF THE CWFA...OTHERWISE
EXPECT DRY CONDITIONS.  BEYOND MONDAY...MODELS INDICATE A DIRTY...
FLAT RIDGE OVER THE AREA FOR DRY AND MORE SEASONAL CONDITIONS.  GKH

PDT 2213  ALW 2213  PSC 1002  YKM 0000

.KPDT...WSR-88D...VCP21/CSR21...OPERATIONAL.

.KPDT...NONE.

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, Wallowa

When: May 24, 5:30 PM PST
Where: Wallowa County, Enterprise
Property damage: $40,000
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 45.580, -117.181 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lightning struck a 75 foot radio antenna and short-circuited many electronic devices such as faxes, computers and phones, which were located next to the tower. One business owner estimated total losses of over 25 thousand dollars. Other lightning strikes cut power to 800 customers in the nearby towns of Wallowa Lake and Joseph.

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

Every storm in Oregon in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Oregon, May 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: 5243256.