Strong Wind in California, June 6 to 8, 2004

Name: Strong Wind in California, June 6 to 8, 2004
Start: 2004-06-06T23:03
End: 2004-06-08T02:00
Location: California

June 6 to 8, 2004 · NWS HNX · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

Brisk northwest wind occurred over the Kern County Mountains and Deserts on the 7th. Highway 58, north of Mojave, was closed due to the strong wind.

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.

Brisk northwest wind occurred over the Kern County Mountains and Deserts on the 7th. Highway 58, north of Mojave, was closed due to the strong wind.

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 Jun 6, 6:30 PM PST, 4 hours 33 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 6, 6:30 PM PST, 4 hours 33 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HANFORD CA
730 PM PDT SUN JUN 6 2004

.SHORT TERM...FOR THE CENTRAL CALIFORNIA INTERIOR...MAX TEMPS THIS
AFTN WERE SIMILAR TO SAT READINGS IN VALLEY AND MOUNTAIN
AREAS...BOTH ABOUT 5 DEG F ABOVE NORMAL. DESERT AREAS WERE DOWN 2 TO
4 DEG F MAINLY DUE TO BREEZY CONDITIONS THERE.

EAST/WEST ELONGATED LOW LOCATED JUST OFF WASHINGTON COAST THIS
EVENING. SHORTWAVE EMBEDDED IN THIS FEATURE ALONG 50N PROGGED TO
SWING AROUND LOW AS IT DROPS SOUTH INTO NORCAL BY 06Z TUE. LATEST
MAX T FCST FOR MON APPEARS ON TRACK WITH ONLY FEW DEG F OF SYNOPTIC
COOLING...MAINLY NORTH...AS HEIGHTS FALL AHEAD OF APPROACHING
SYSTEM. NOT MUCH MOISTURE AHEAD OF LOW AND EXPECT MOSTLY
CLEAR SKIES TO CONTINUE THROUGH MON EVENING. BIGGEST CHANGE MON/TUE
WILL BE TIGHTENING PRESS GRADIENTS RESULTING IN INCREASING WINDS...
ESPECIALLY KERN MTNS/DESERTS.

LATEST PROGS CONT TO TAKE AN INLAND TRACK WITH LOW THROUGH TUE...
THEN MOVE IT EASTWARD ON WED. BULK OF MOISTURE REMAINS NORTH OF CWFA
BUT ENOUGH DYNAMICS REMAIN TO KEEP MENTION OF SHOWERS/POSSIBLE MTN
TSTMS FROM FRESNO COUNTY N. ALSO EXPECT BLOWING DUST ALONG W SIDE OF
SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY.

.LONG TERM...FROM PREVIOUS DISCUSSION FOR WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH
SUNDAY...MEDIUM RANGE MODELS CONTINUE TO SHOW GOOD RUN TO RUN
CONSISTENCY AND OPEN UP CLOSED LOW OVER NORTHERN NEVADA WED NIGHT
AND BRING TROF AXIS EAST OF THE SIERNEV BY 12Z THU. ALTHO ONSHORE
GRADIENTS ARE FORECAST TO WEAKEN...NW FLOW ALOFT IN WAKE OF THIS
TROF STILL SUPPORTS LOCALLY STRONG AND GUSTY WINDS THRU AND BLO THE
MOUNTAIN PASSES OF KERN CO THU. OTHERWISE...DRY WEATHER BACK IN THE
PICTURE WITH SOME TEMPERATURE MODERATION. HOWEVER...NW FLOW ALOFT
LEAVES THE DOOR OPEN FOR OTHER UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCES TO DROP
SOUTHEASTWARD FROM VANCOUVER. THE GFS HINTS AT THIS MORE THAN ANY OF
THE OTHER MODELS AND BRINGS ANOTHER WEAK SHORT WAVE TROF INTO CA
FRIDAY. THE NET RESULT OF THIS MIGHT BE TO REINFORCE THE ONSHORE
FLOW ACROSS CENTRAL CA FRIDAY AND TEMPORARILY HALT OUR WARMUP.
SIMILARLY...THE GFS DROPS YET ANOTHER WEAK SHORT WAVE TROF INTO CA
LATER THIS WEEKEND. WHATEVER THE CASE...DRY WEATHER WILL PREVAIL IN
THE 4 TO 7 DAY PD. FEAR MAX TEMPS MAY STRUGGLE TO REACH NORMAL BY
SATURDAY...IN SPITE OF MOS GUIDANCE TREND TOWARD CLIMATOLOGY. WILL
LEAVE MAX TEMPS ALONE FOR NOW...BUT IF THE GFS SOLN OF SOMEWHAT
DEEPER TROFINESS OVER CA PANS OUT...MAX TEMPS WILL NEED TO BE
TRIMMED DOWN A BIT IN ALL PERIODS.

&&

.HNX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE.

&&

BINGHAM/DURFEE

Event by event

3 strong wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Strong Wind, Se Kern Cty Desert

When: June 6, 11:03 PM PST to June 8, 2:00 AM PST
Where: Se Kern Cty Desert forecast zone
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph) estimated gust
Property damage: $1,000
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Strong Wind, Kern Cty Mtns

When: June 7, 12:58 AM PST to June 8, 2:00 AM PST
Where: Kern Cty Mtns forecast zone
Measured: 48 kt (55 mph) measured gust
Property damage: $1,000
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Strong Wind, Indian Wells Vly

When: June 7, 4:10 AM PST to June 8, 2:00 AM PST
Where: Indian Wells Vly forecast zone
Measured: 40 kt (46 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 2004 Every state in 2004 This day in weather history Warnings in California, June 2004

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: 5406276, 5406275, 5406277.