Strong Wind in California, February 19 to 20, 2003

Name: Strong Wind in California, February 19 to 20, 2003
Start: 2003-02-19T14:30
End: 2003-02-20T12:13
Location: California

February 19 to 20, 2003 · NWS HNX · 5 events in 5 counties and zones

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $28,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 5

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.

Cold-frontal passage brought strong north wind to the southern portion Interior Central California late afternoon and early evening of the 19th. In the Kern County Desert area some power line damage was reported along Highway 14 along with blowing dust/sand from the situation. Wind speed gusts were generally 40-50 MPH with one isolated report of 74 knots at Government Peak in the Southeast Kern Desert early on the morning of the 20th. On the South San Joaquin Valley floor wind speeds reached 37 MPH at Hanford and 44 MPH at Bakersfield. The strong wind caused a major power outage affecting 12,000 customers in the city of Lemoore and an additional 18,000 customers elsewhere in Kings and Southwest Fresno Counties.

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 Feb 19, 9:11 AM PST, 5 hours 19 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 19, 9:11 AM PST, 5 hours 19 minutes before

INTERIOR CENTRAL CALIFORNIA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HANFORD CA
911 AM PST WED FEB 19 2003

WATER VAPOR IMAGES SHOW AN UPPER LOW OVER N CAL WITH FRONTAL
BOUNDARY ACROSS CENTRAL CA AND A SECONDARY COLD FRONT OVER THE BAY
AREA MOVING SE AROUND 25 MPH. WEATHER RADAR SHOWS A BAND OF RAIN
JUST NORTH OF MERCED COUNTY NEAR MODESTO. SOME COOL UNSTABLE AIR
BEHIND THE FRONT WILL MOVE INTO NORTHERN CAL THIS AFTERNOON. WITH
SOME INSTABILITY AND DYNAMICS WITH THE UPPER LOW...WILL ADD ISOLATED
THUNDERSTORMS FOR THE CENTRAL SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY SINCE MESOETA SHOWS
HIGHEST CAPES N OF FRESNO. THE UPPER LOW WILL RAPIDLY MOVE SE
REACHING THE KERN COUNTY DESERTS AROUND 06Z TODAY. EXPECT SOME GUSTY
WINDS ESPECIALLY IN THE SIERRA AS THE LOW MOVES THROUGH. HOWEVER
DONT THINK HIGH WINDS WILL MATERIALIZE SINCE THE UPPER LEVEL SUPPORT
IS LACKING WITH THE UPPER LEVEL N JET TRAILING WELL BEHIND THE LOW.
EXPECT SOME GUSTY WINDS IN THE TEHACHAPI PASSES AND DESERTS AS A
STRONG SURFACE PRESSURE GRADIENT SETS UP FROM THE COAST TO THE
DESERTS. TODAY TEMPERATURE FORECAST ON TRACK WITH HIGHS IN THE
VALLEY IN THE UPPER 50S. MV

FOR THE EXTENDED PERIOD SATURDAY THROUGH TUESDAY...UPPER RIDGE WILL
MAINTAIN A DRY AND STABLE PATTERN OVER THE CWA THROUGH SAT. WHILE
MAJORITY OF MEDIUM RANGE PROGS PROJECT GULF OF AK TROF CLOSING OFF
NEAR 40N/130W SUN...00Z GFS HAS DEPARTED FROM ENSEMBLE MEAN AND
INDICATES TROF CLOSING ABOUT 400 MI SOUTHWEST NEAR 35N/135W.
EVENTUAL TRACK WILL SIGNIFICANTLY IMPACT LOCATION OF DEEPEST
MOISTURE/DYNAMICS...AND TIME TABLE OVER WHICH MOISTURE REMAINS. WITH
NUMERICAL CONSENSUS FAVORING WEAK TROFFINESS ALOFT THRU MON...AT
THIS TIME WILL MAINTAIN CURRENT SLIGHT CHANCE POPS FOR LATE SUN INTO
MON FOR MAINLY NORTHERN PORTIONS OF THE SIERRA NEVADA. JSN

.HNX...NONE.

Hazardous weather outlook, Feb 19, 5:45 AM PST, 8 hours 45 minutes before

CAZ089>099-201345-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY - HANFORD CA
545 AM PST WED FEB 19 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
INTERIOR.

.DAY ONE...TODAY

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY

THE PROBABILITY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

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

Event by event

5 strong wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Strong Wind, Sw S.J. Valley

When: February 19, 2:30 PM PST to 5:00 PM PST
Where: Sw S.J. Valley forecast zone
Measured: 32 kt (37 mph) measured gust
Property damage: $5,000
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Strong Wind, Se S.J. Valley

When: February 19, 3:30 PM PST to 7:00 PM PST
Where: Se S.J. Valley forecast zone
Measured: 38 kt (44 mph) measured gust
Property damage: $1,000
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Strong Wind, Kern Cty Mtns

When: February 19, 5:13 PM PST to February 20, 8:13 AM PST
Where: Kern Cty Mtns forecast zone
Measured: 44 kt (51 mph) estimated gust
Property damage: $1,000
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Strong Wind, Se Kern Cty Desert

When: February 19, 7:43 PM PST to February 20, 12:13 PM PST
Where: Se Kern Cty Desert forecast zone
Measured: 74 kt (85 mph) measured gust
Property damage: $20,000
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Strong Wind, Indian Wells Vly

When: February 19, 10:13 PM PST to February 20, 12:13 PM PST
Where: Indian Wells Vly forecast zone
Measured: 53 kt (61 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, February 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: 5342719, 5342720, 5342716, 5342718, 5342717.