A High Wind Warning was issued for the above zone at 2200 PST on 12/13/02 and expired around 1900 PST on 12/14/02. The above spotter report and observations at Weed verified the warning; the highest sustained wind and peak gust are recorded there.
Every event with a place to put it; 3 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 the above zone at 2200 PST on 12/13/02 and expired around 1900 PST on 12/14/02. The above spotter report and observations at Weed verified the warning; the highest sustained wind and peak gust are recorded there.
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 Dec 14, 8:30 AM PST, 1 hour 15 minutes earlier.
SOUTHWEST OREGON/NORTHERN CALIFORNIA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEDFORD OR
830 AM PST SAT DEC 14 2002
VERY STRONG STORM APPROACHING THE COAST AT THIS TIME. WINDS GUSTING
TO 91 MPH AT CAPE BLANCO. THIS WILL CONTINUE UNTIL FRONTAL PASSAGE
AROUND NOON TODAY. WINDS INLAND WILL BE INCREASING AND REACHING HIGH
WIND CRITERIA MANY AREAS THIS AFTERNOON. FRONT WILL REACH THE
CASCADES AROUND 4PM AND THEN MOVE RAPIDLY ACROSS THE EASTSIDE. COLD
AIR BEHIND THE FRONT WILL LOWER SNOW LEVELS. SHOWERS PRETTY
IMPRESSIVE ON SATELLITE BUT PROGS INDICATE THAT PRECIP AMOUNTS NORTH
OF THE OREGON BORDER ARE PRETTY MEAGER. THUS WILL STAY WITH WINTER
STORM TONIGHT IN PARTS OF SISKIYOU COUNTY BUT NOT ANYWHERE ELSE. MAY
ISSUE A SNOW ADVISORY THOUGH THIS AFTERNOON FOR THE CASCADES IF
SHOWER ACTIVITY CONTINUES TO LOOK IMPRESSIVE. ANOTHER POWERFUL STORM
DUE IN SUNDAY. THIS STORM WILL BRING LOTS OF WINDS AGAIN TO THE
AREA. THE MAIN DIFFERENCE WILL BE SUNDAYS STORM WILL BRINGS
CONSIDERABLY MORE RAIN AND MAY BECOME A HYDRO PROBLEM BY LATE SUNDAY
OR MONDAY. WILL UPDATE ZONES TO ADD WINDS ADVISORY TO OREGON ZONES 23
AND 23...OTHERWISE NO CHANGE TO MORNING PACKAGE.
GETTMAN
.MFR...STORM WARNING TODAY FLORENCE OR TO PT ST GEORGE CA.
HIGH SURF ADVISORY TODAY THROUGH MONDAY ORZ021-022
HIGH WIND WARNING TODAY ORZ021-022-029>031 CAZ081-084-085
WIND ADVISORY TODAY ORZ023-024-026
WIND STORM WARNING ABOVE 4000 FT TONIGHT CAZ080-082ORZ021>031-CAZ080>085-151430- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEDFORD OR 630 AM PST SAT DEC 14 2002 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTHERN OREGON AND NORTHERN CALIFORNIA .DAY ONE...TODAY HIGH WIND WARNING S OREGON COAST...KLAMATH AND LAKE...EASTERN SISKIYOU AND MODOC COUNTY AND SHASTA VALLEY...SEE PDXNPWMFR. WINTER STORM WARNING ABOVE 4000 FEET WESTERN AND SOUTH CENTRAL SISKIYOU COUNTY...SEE PDXNPWMFR. GALE WARNING FLORENCE OR TO PT ST GEORGE CA...SEE PDXCWFMFR. HIGH SURF ADVISORY FOR SOUTH OREGON COAST...SEE PDXMWSMFR. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. ORR
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
3 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Weed RAWS recorded a sustained wind of 44 mph.
Spotter SY94 recorded south to southeast winds gusting to 69 mph.
Weed RAWS recorded a peak wind of 65 mph.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in California, December 2002
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: 5326380, 5326382, 5326381.