Strong Wind in California, April 1 to 2, 2003

Name: Strong Wind in California, April 1 to 2, 2003
Start: 2003-04-01T10:00
End: 2003-04-02T15:21
Location: California

April 1 to 2, 2003 · NWS HNX · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

Strong, gusty south wind consistently pushed gusts well over 40 MPH from the morning of the 1st and well into the 2nd of April with a lone incident of 61 MPH at Government Peak in the Kern Deserts during the afternoon of the 1st.

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $3,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 3

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 happened

The episode as NWS HNX wrote it up.

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 Hanford, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 1, 9:30 AM PST, 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 1, 9:30 AM PST, 30 minutes before

INTERIOR CENTRAL CALIFORNIA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY - HANFORD CA
930 AM PST TUE APR 1 2003

SATELLITE AND RADAR COMPOSITE LOOPS SHOW A NARROW COLD FRONT
DROPPING THROUGH NORTHERN CALIFORNIA THIS MORNING. RAIN HAS REACHED
THE SACRAMENTO DELTA...WITH TRAVIS RECORDING A TRACE OF RAIN AND
MEASURABLE RAIN FURTHER NORTH. THE GOES VISIBLE LOOPS SHOWS ABUNDANT
COLD-AIR CUMULUS BEHIND THE FRONTAL BAND...HERALDING THE ARRIVAL OF
A MAJOR COLD-AIR PUSH INTO THE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY BEGINNING THIS
AFTERNOON.

THE 12Z MESO-ETA BRINGS THE LEADING EDGE OF THE FRONTAL RAIN BAND TO
MERCED BY 21Z WEDNESDAY...DRIVEN BY A 18.4 500-MB VORTICITY CENTER
AND 700-MB OMEGAS OF 10+ MICROBARS/SECOND.

AHEAD OF THE FRONT...SURFACE PRESSURE GRADIENTS HAVE BEGUN
TIGHTENING ACROSS SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA. THE LOS ANGELES-TONOPAH
GRADIENT WAS UP TO 8.1 MB AT 16Z. WITH THE ONSHORE GRADIENT...
SOUTHWEST WINDS ARE OCCURRING OVER THE MOJAVE DESERT...WITH SOUTH
WINDS IN THE INDIAN WELLS VALLEY.

THE 12Z ETA/NGM/GFS ARE IN GOOD AGREEMENT WITH THE TROUGH AXIS
MOVING THROUGH CENTRAL CALIFORNIA BETWEEN 06-12Z WEDNESDAY....WITH A
SHORT-WAVE MOVING THROUGH THE REGION WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON. AN 18.2
500-MB VORTICITY MOVES THROUGH THE NORTHERN HALF OF THE HANFORD
WARNING/FORECAST AREA WITH THE SHORT-WAVE.  THIS WILL KEEP UNSETTLED
WEATHER OVER THE REGION THROUGH THE DAY. 700-MB OMEGAS INCREASE TO
+20 MICROBARS/SECOND OVER THE SOUTHERN SIERRA NEVADA...AND THE MESO-
ETA IS FORECASTING A QPF AT YOSEMITE OF AROUND 3/4 INCH. WITH SNOW
LEVELS EXPECTED TO FALL TO 4000 FEET OR LESS...TWO-DAY TOTAL SNOW
ACCUMULATIONS COULD APPROACH ADVISORY LEVELS. WILL WAIT UNTIL AFTER
COORDINATION CALLS BEFORE DECIDING WHETHER TO ISSUE AN ADVISORY.

DO NOT PLAN ANY CHANGES TO THE FORECAST AT THIS TIME.

POPS FAT 344 BFL 032 YNP 576.

.HNX...NONE.

SANGER

Hazardous weather outlook, Apr 1, 5:30 AM PST, 4 hours 30 minutes before

CAZ089>099-021345-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY - HANFORD CA
530 AM PST TUE APR 1 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
INTERIOR.

.DAY ONE...TODAY

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER
CONDITIONS TO THEIR LOCAL NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE.

Event by event

3 strong wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Strong Wind, Indian Wells Vly

When: April 1, 10:00 AM PST to April 2, 3:21 PM PST
Where: Indian Wells Vly forecast zone
Measured: 47 kt (54 mph) measured gust
Property damage: $1,000
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Strong Wind, Se Kern Cty Desert

When: April 1, 10:00 AM PST to April 2, 3:21 PM PST
Where: Se Kern Cty Desert forecast zone
Measured: 47 kt (54 mph) measured gust
Property damage: $1,000
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Strong Wind, Kern Cty Mtns

When: April 1, 2:00 PM PST to April 2, 3:21 PM PST
Where: Kern Cty Mtns forecast zone
Measured: 39 kt (45 mph) measured gust
Property damage: $1,000
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

What these are

Strong Wind: Non-thunderstorm winds below high wind criteria that nonetheless caused damage or casualties.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in California in 2003 Every state in 2003 This day in weather history Warnings in California, April 2003

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: 5350279, 5350280, 5350278.