A High Wind Warning was issued for the headlands of ORZ021/022 effective at the above times, but no verifying observations were recorded.
Every event with a place to put it; 2 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
The episode as NWS MFR wrote it up.
A High Wind Warning was issued for the headlands of ORZ021/022 effective at the above times, but no verifying observations were recorded.
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 Medford, OR wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 1, 3:25 AM PST, 1 hour 34 minutes earlier.
SOUTHWEST OREGON/NORTHERN CALIFORNIA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEDFORD OR
325 AM PST WED JAN 01 2003
FRONTAL BOUNDARY WILL STALL OFFSHORE TODAY AND THURSDAY WITH
MOISTURE STREAMING INTO WESTERN WASHINGTON AND NORTHWEST OREGON.
HIGHEST POPS WILL BE AT THE COAST TAPERING DOWN INLAND AND TO THE
SOUTH. SNOW LEVELS WILL RISE SIGNIFICANTLY WITH PERSISTENT SOUTHERLY
FLOW AND LIGHT PRECIPITATION RATES. FRONT MAY MAKE SOME PROGRESS
INLAND THURSDAY NIGHT BUT WILL SHIFT BACK NORTH FRIDAY AS YET
ANOTHER WAVE DEVELOPS OFFSHORE. EXACT POPS HARD TO GAUGE WITH
BOUNDARY STALLED OFFSHORE AND THEN LOW CONFIDENCE IN EXACT LOCATION
FRONT WILL REACH INLAND THURSDAY NIGHT/EARLY FRIDAY.
ANOTHER ISSUE IS HOW MUCH WIND AT THE COAST. WIND WILL FLIRT WITH
HIGH WIND WARNING CRITERIA AT THE HEADLANDS THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH
LATE THURSDAY. CURRENT FORECAST HAS GUSTS TO 55 MPH AND THIS SEEMS
REASONABLE AS STRONGEST WINDS SHOULD REMAIN OFFSHORE.
IN THE EXTENDED SUNDAY AND MONDAY MAY BE THE ONLY DRY DAYS. THE MEAN
LONGWAVE PACIFIC TROUGH RETROGRADES INTO THE WEEKEND. THE RIDGE
BUILDS SUNDAY AND MONDAY...ESPECIALLY ON MONDAY. HOWEVER...WITH THE
CURRENT WET PATTERN WILL HAVE TO KEEP AN EYE ON SUNDAY IF THE RIDGE
DOESNT BUILD AS QUICKLY A CHANCE OF RAIN MAY HAVE TO BE ADDED TO
THE NORTH.
SANDLER
.MFR...GALE WARNING....FLORENCE OR TO PT. ST. GEORGE CA.
HIGH SURF ADVISORY ORZ021-022.
FLOOD WARNING...SOUTH COQUILLE RIVER AT MYRTLE POINT.
COQUILLE RIVER AT COQUILLE.ORZ021>031-CAZ080>085-011430- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEDFORD OR 630 AM PST TUE DEC 31 2002 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTHERN OREGON AND NORTHERN CALIFORNIA .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT WINTER STORM WARNING ABOVE 3500 FEET EASTERN DOUGLAS COUNTY FOOTHILLS...SOUTH CENTRAL OREGON CASCADES...SOUTHERN OREGON CASCADES AND SISKIYOU MOUNTAINS...WESTERN SISKIYOU COUNTY...CENTRAL SISKIYOU COUNTY AND SOUTH CENTRAL SISKIYOU COUNTY...NORTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHEASTERN SISKIYOU COUNTY...SEE PDXWSWMFR FOR DETAILS. FLOOD WARNING FOR THE COQUILLE RIVER AT MYRTLE POINT...COQUILLE AT COQUILLE ...AND THE ROGUE RIVER AT AGNESS...SEE PDXFLSMFR FOR DETAILS. SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR FLORENCE TO CAPE BLANCO OREGON...SEE PDXCWFMFR FOR DETAILS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY POSSIBLE FLOODING AND HEAVY SNOW FOR INCOMING SYSTEM FOR WEDNESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY. WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. GERIG
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
2 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
See below.
See below.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Oregon in 2003Every state in 2003This day in weather historyWarnings in Oregon, January 2003
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: 5338980, 5338981.