Flooding and Heavy Snow in California, December 31, 2002

Name: Flooding and Heavy Snow in California, December 31, 2002
Start: 2002-12-31T00:00
End: 2002-12-31T20:30
Location: California

December 31, 2002 · NWS EKA · 7 events in 5 counties and zones

5 flood, 1 heavy snow, 1 funnel cloud, 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: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 7

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 Eureka, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 30, 9:34 PM PST, 2 hours 26 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 30, 9:34 PM PST, 2 hours 26 minutes before

NORTHWEST CALIFORNIA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EUREKA CA
930 PM MON DEC 30 2002

FRONT MOVED THROUGH NORTH OF CAPE MENDO EARLY THIS EVENING.
FRONT SHOULD CLEAR MENDOCINO COUNTY AFTER MIDNIGHT. ALREADY UPDATED
ZONES 2 AND 76 TO ADD THUNDER. INCLINED TO LEAVE THE WIND ADVISORY
GOING ZONES 1 AND 3...UNTIL THE NEGATIVELY TILTED UPPER TROUGH LIFTS
OUT TO THE NORTHEAST AFTER MIDNIGHT. THE ADVISORY AND WARNINGS FOR
SNOW IN THE MOUNTAINS LOOK ON TARGET AND NO ADJUSTMENTS ARE NEEDED.

CEC/ACV/EKA +867 UKI +842

.EKA...WINTER STORM WARNING ABOVE 3000 FT CAZ004.
    ...SNOW ADVISORY ABOVE 3000 FT CAZ003.
    ...WIND ADVISORY ZONES 1 AND 3.
    ...FLOOD WARNING NAVARRO RIVER AT NAVARRO.
    ...URBAN AND SMALL STREAM FLOOD ADVISORY CAZ001.
    ...COASTAL FLOOD ADVISORY CAZ001-002.
    ...GALE WARNING PT ST GEORGE TO PT ARENA OUT 60NM.
    ...HIGH SURF ADVISORY PZZ450-455 AND CAZ001-002.

Hazardous weather outlook, Dec 30, 5:36 AM PST, 18 hours 24 minutes before

CAZ001>004-076-311400-
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EUREKA CA
536 AM PST MON DEC 30 2002

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHWEST CALIFORNIA

.DAY ONE...TODAY

ABOVE 3000 FEET...A WINTER STORM WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR THE UPPER
TRINITY RIVER ...AND A SNOW ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT ACROSS THE NORTH
COAST INTERIOR. A WIND ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT FOR DEL NORTE AND
HUMBOLDT COUNTIES ALONG WITH COASTAL SECTIONS OF MENDOCINO COUNTY.
SEE DETAILS OF THESE WARNINGS AND ADVISORIES IN SFOWSWEKA.

AN URBAN/SMALL STREAM FLOOD ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT FOR DEL NORTE AND
HUMBOLDT COUNTIES TODAY. SEE SFOFLSEKA FOR DETAILS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY

SATURATED GROUND AND EXCESSIVE PRECIPITATION WILL ALLOW MAIN STEM
RIVERS TO RISE DURING THE COMING WEEK. ANOTHER SYSTEM IS EXPECTED
ALONG THE NORTHWEST COAST OF CALIFORNIA THURSDAY.

.INSTRUCTIONS TO SPOTTERS...
WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER
CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.

MJV

In the hours before

Local storm report, Dec 30, 9:16 PM PST, 2 hours 44 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EUREKA CA
0916 PM PST MON DEC 30 2002

TIME(PST)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0725 PM    18 N ARCATA               CA   70 MPH TSTORM WIND
12/30/02   HUMBOLDT                       SPOTTER NEAR PATRICKS
                                          POINT STATE PARK MEASURED
                                          WIND DURING SQUALL LINE
                                          PASSAGE.

JL

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

5 flood, 1 heavy snow, 1 funnel cloud. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Upper Trinity River

When: December 31, 12:00 AM PST to 7:00 AM PST
Where: Upper Trinity River forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

12 inches of snow was generally reported with a peak amount of 30 inches.

Flood, Mendocino Interior

When: December 31, 1:30 AM PST to 2:30 PM PST
Where: Mendocino Interior forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.

Russian River caused minor flooding near Hopland.

Flood, Mendocino Coast

When: December 31, 4:45 AM PST to 10:45 AM PST
Where: Mendocino Coast forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.

Navarro River at Navarro crested at 25.9 feet - flood stage 23 feet.

Flood, Mendocino Coast

When: December 31, 7:00 AM PST to 11:00 AM PST
Where: Mendocino Coast forecast zone
Reported by: GOVT OFFICIAL

Minor coastal flooding reported by state parks ranger.

Flood, Redwood Coast

When: December 31, 7:00 AM PST to 11:00 AM PST
Where: Redwood Coast forecast zone
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC

Minor coastal flooding around Humboldt Bay and near Crescent City.

Flood, Redwood Coast

When: December 31, 2:00 PM PST to 8:30 PM PST
Where: Redwood Coast forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.

Eel River at Fernbridge crested at 20.3 feet - Flood stage 20 feet.

Funnel Cloud, Del Norte

When: December 31, 5:00 PM PST to 6:00 PM PST
Where: Del Norte County, 5 mi S of Crescent City
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 41.745, -123.958 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Spotters reported numerous cold air funnels over the Pacific Ocean near Crescent City.

What these are

Heavy Snow: Snowfall reaching the local warning threshold without the other hazards of a winter storm.
Flood: Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.
Funnel Cloud: A rotating column of cloud extending from a thunderstorm that did not reach the ground.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in California in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in California, December 2002

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: 5325725, 5327233, 5327235, 5325724, 5327236, 5327234, 5327232.