Dense Fog, Sw S.J. Valley
- When
- December 16, 1:37 AM PST to December 18, 11:30 AM PST
- Where
- Sw S.J. Valley forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Dense Fog in California, December 16 to 18, 2003
In a favorable environment, morning fog developed over a 3-day period from the 16th through the 18th. The morning of the 18th had the worst fog with law enforcement reporting visibility as low as 75 feet on area highways.
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $160,000
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 4
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.
In a favorable environment, morning fog developed over a 3-day period from the 16th through the 18th. The morning of the 18th had the worst fog with law enforcement reporting visibility as low as 75 feet on area highways. Numerous vehicle accidents occurred with at least 4 indirect deaths and 3 indirect injuries.
Event by event
4 dense fog. Local standard time, as filed.
Dense Fog, Se S.J. Valley
- When
- December 16, 3:15 AM PST to December 18, 11:30 AM PST
- Where
- Se S.J. Valley forecast zone
- Property damage
- $40,000
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Dense Fog, E Central S.J. Valley
- When
- December 16, 7:00 AM PST to December 18, 11:00 AM PST
- Where
- E Central S.J. Valley forecast zone
- Property damage
- $120,000
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Dense Fog, W Central S.J. Valley
- When
- December 18, 7:00 AM PST to 11:00 AM PST
- Where
- W Central S.J. Valley forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
What these are
- Dense Fog
- Fog reducing visibility to a quarter mile or less, filed where it caused accidents or disruption.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
More
Every storm in California in 2003Every state in 2003This day in weather historyWarnings in California, December 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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5330710, 5330711, 5330709, 5330708.