California, 2002

Wildfire in California, September 22 to 30, 2002

September 22 to 30, 2002 · NWS LOX · 1 event in 1 county or zone

1 wildfire, 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

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
14
Property damage
$15 million
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 Los Angeles, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Sep 22, 1:30 AM PST, 4 hours 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Sep 22, 1:30 AM PST, 4 hours 30 minutes before
SOUTHWEST CALIFORNIA AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LOS ANGELES/OXNARD CA
230 AM PDT SUN SEP 22 2002

WARM CONDITIONS THE NAME OF THE GAME TODAY AND INTO THE FIRST PART OF
THE WEEK. AVN AGAIN TOO OVER DONE ON OFFSHORE FLOW ALSO ETA IS TOO
UNDER DONE SO WILL GO FOR SOMETHING IN BETWEEN. UPPER LEVEL WINDS ARE
THE MOST OFFSHORE OVER THE CENTRAL COAST TODAY SO THIHK THOSE COASTAL
AREAS WILL SEE THE BIGGEST WARM UP TODAY.

UPPER LEVEL OFFSHORE FLOW CONTINUES OVER CENTRAL COAST MONDAY AND
PICKS UP A LITTLE MORE OVER L.A. AND VTX COUNTY SO EXPECT A LITTLE
MORE WARMING EVERYWHERE MONDAY.

MARINE LAYER RETREATING QUICKLY SOUTH OF POINT CONCEPTION ADN UNLESS
SOMETHING FORMS OUT OF THIN AIR DO NOT EXPECT TO SEE A MARINE LAYER
TODAY. MONDAYS MARINE LAYER SHOULD ALSO BE NON EXISTANT AS MONDAY AM
IS THE DAY OF MAX OFFSHORE FLOW FOR THE WEEK.

NOT MUCH CHANGES TUESDAY EXCPET FOR A LITTLE ONSHORE TREND THAT MIGHT
COOL THE COASTS A TOUCH.

BY WEDNESDAY A CONUS WIDE TROF SAGS SOUTHWARD FROM CANADA HGTS LOWER A
LITTLE OVER SO CAL AND ONSHORE FLOW INCREASES SOME BUT DO NTO SEE ANY
BIG CHANGES.

THURSDAY A SAGGY BAGGY TROF MOVES OVERHEAD AND SHOULD BE ENOUGH TO GIN
UP A MAINE LAYER ESP GIVEN HOW COLD THE WATERS ARE RELITIVE TO NORMAL.

LAX 000. RORKE

.LOX...HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK (SEE LAXSPSLOX).

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.

Wildfire, Los Angeles

When
September 22, 6:00 AM PST to September 30, 6:00 PM PST
Where
Los Angeles County, 25 mi N of Azusa
Injuries
14 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$15 million
Reported by
FIRE DEPT/RESCUE SQUAD
Coordinates
34.198, -118.261 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The Williams Fire burned 38.094 acres of land in the Angeles National Forest. This fire, which was located about 25 miles north of Azusa, destroyed 77 structures, including 62 cabins. No reports on the number of possible injuries have been received.

What these are

Wildfire
A fire burning in wildland vegetation, with its acreage and damage where known.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in California in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in California, September 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: 5316894.