Name: High Wind in Washington, April 30, 2001
Start: 2001-04-30T12:00
End: 2001-04-30T16:00
Location: Washington

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: 1
Property damage: $75,000
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 Apr 30, 7:30 AM PST, 4 hours 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 30, 7:30 AM PST, 4 hours 30 minutes before

NORTHEAST OREGON/SOUTHEAST WASHINGTON FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OR
830 AM PDT MON APR 30 2001

BUCKLING OF THE STRONG ZONAL FLOW TAKING PLACE IN THE EASTERN
PACIFIC AND APPROACHING THE PAC NW. FRONT IS APPROACHING NW WA AT
THIS TIME. AHEAD OF THE FRONT REGIONAL RADARS AND METARS SHOWING
WIDE SPREAD RAIN OCCURRING WITH SNOW AT AND ABOVE MOST PASS LEVELS.
ALREADY UPDATED ZONES TO INCREASE POPS IN MANY LOCATIONS THROUGH
MIDDAY. FRONT WILL BEGIN MOVING EAST OF THE CASCADES AROUND MIDDAY.
PRECIP SHOULD END ALONG EAST SLOPES AT THAT TIME AND WIND BEGIN TO
INCREASE. EXPECT THIS TRANSITION TO CROSS THE LOWER BASIN AND INTO
THE BLUE MOUNTAIN FOOTHILLS DURING THE AFTERNOON. MODEL DATA
CONTINUES TO PROMOTE THE IDEA OF STRONG WINDS ASSOCIATED WITH
FRONTAL PASSAGE. HIGH WIND WARNINGS CONTINUE FOR THIS AFTERNOON AND
EVENING. WINDS WILL GRADUALLY DECREASE AFTER SUNSET. SOLOMON

PDT 822  ALW 922  PSC 911  YKM 411

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

.KPDT...HIGH WIND WARNING THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING FOR
        THE YAKIMA AND KITTITAS VALLEYS...THE LOWER COLUMBIA
        BASIN...THE FOOTHILLS OF THE BLUE MOUNTAINS...EASTERN
        COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE...AND NORTH CENTRAL OREGON FOR AREAS
        EAST OF THE DESCHUTES RIVER.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Lower Columbia Basin

When: April 30, 12:00 PM PST to 4:00 PM PST
Where: Lower Columbia Basin forecast zone
Measured: 42 kt (48 mph)
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $75,000
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 46.220, -119.419 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Strong winds associated with the passage of a cold front overturned a tractor trailer rig, slightly injuring the driver. The accident occurred at 3 pm PST south of Kennewick at the intersection of U.S. Highway 395 and Interstate - 82. Earlier that afternoon, blowing dust reduced visibilities to less than 100 feet near Hanford, prompting the early release of some workers. In Kennewick, power was lost briefly to about 50 residences along Gum Street.

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 Washington in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Washington, April 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: 5240491.