Strong Wind, Se Kern Cty Desert
- When
- May 11, 4:45 AM PST to May 12, 3:00 AM PST
- Where
- Se Kern Cty Desert forecast zone
- Measured
- 40 kt (46 mph) measured gust
- Property damage
- $1,000
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Strong Wind in California, May 11 to 12, 2004
Gusty northwest wind swept over the Kern County Deserts and Mountains on the 11th and into the early morning hours of the 12th.
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.
Gusty northwest wind swept over the Kern County Deserts and Mountains on the 11th and into the early morning hours of the 12th.
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 May 11, 1:55 AM PST, 2 hours 50 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, May 11, 1:55 AM PST, 2 hours 50 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HANFORD CA
255 AM PDT TUE MAY 11 2004
.SHORT TERM...FOR THE CENTRAL CALIFORNIA INTERIOR...PRIMARY SHORT
TERM CONCERN REMAINS GUSTY WINDS IN THE KERN MTNS/DESERTS. UPPER
TROUGH SHIFTING INTO THE GREAT BASIN WILL BE REINFORCED BY A
SHORTWAVE CURRENTLY APPROACHING THE PAC NW. SFO-LAS P-GRAD REMAINED
A MODERATE 12 MB AT 08Z...WITH GUSTS AROUND 50 MPH STILL OCCURRING
OVER HIGHER KERN RIDGES. WSETA HAS PERFORMED WELL LATELY AND
PROJECTS A TEMPORARY LULL IN SPEEDS LATER THIS MORNING BEFORE
P-GRADS INCREASE 3-4 MB THIS AFTERNOON. THOUGH UPPER SUPPORT WILL BE
SLIGHTLY WEAKER THAN MONDAY...TIGHT GRAD AND DEEP ALIGNMENT OF
SURFACE-UPPER FLOWS SHOULD AGAIN SUPPORT SPEEDS AT WAD LEVELS NEAR
THE PASSES AND OVER HIGHER RIDGES IN THE KERN MTNS/DESERTS. WILL
KEEP GUSTS IN GRIDS AND ZONES THRU 4 AM WED WITH HIGH-RES ETA NOT
PROGGING A REDUCTION IN P-GRADS UNTIL AFTER 09Z. PROXIMITY OF UPPER
JET SHOULD ALSO RESULT IN WINDY CONDITIONS OVER HIGHER ELEVS OF THE
SOUTHERN SIERRA... HOWEVER SPEEDS SHOULD REMAIN BELOW WAD LEVELS.
NW-N FLOW WILL CONT WED AS A SECONDARY SHORTWAVE MOVES SOUTH ALONG
BACKSIDE OF TROUGH. HOWEVER DECREASED SURFACE P-GRADS SHOULD RESULT
IN LIGHTER WINDS THRUT THE CWA. THOUGH WAVE WILL KEEP HEIGHTS
SUPPRESSED OVER CENTRAL CA...WITH LIGHTER WINDS AND SOME EXPANSION
IN LOW-MID LEVEL THICKNESSES INDICATED WILL MAINTAIN CURRENT TREND
OF TEMPS INCREASING A FEW DEG. WARMING TREND AND FURTHER DECREASES
IN WINDS WILL OCCUR THURSDAY AS RIDGE BUILDS ONSHORE FROM THE EPAC
ALLOWING SURFACE AND UPPER FLOWS TO RELAX.
.LONG TERM...FOR FRIDAY THROUGH MONDAY...LATEST MEDIUM RANGE MODELS
COMING IN BETTER AGREEMENT. A UPPER RIDGE ALONG THE EASTERN PACIFIC
WILL BUILD TOWARDS THE WEST COAST BRINGING DRY CONDITIONS AND A
WARMING TREND THROUGH THE WEEKEND. THE LATEST RUN OF THE EURO IS
TRENDING TOWARDS THE COOLER GFS SOLUTION DURING THE LATTER PART OF
THE EXTENDED FORECAST. THIS IS ALSO CONSISTENT AND IN BETTER
AGREEMENT WITH THE CANADIAN MODEL. TEMPERATURES SHOULD RISE TO
SLIGHTLY ABOVE NORMAL LEVELS FOR THE WEEKEND. THE UPPER RIDGE WILL
START TO FLATTEN SUNDAY AS AN UPPER LOW APPROACHES THE PACIFIC
NORTHWEST COAST. EXPECT A COOLING TEMPERATURE TREND MONDAY AS THE
SYNOPTIC COOLING WILL BE ENHANCED BY STRONGER WESTERLY ONSHORE
ADVECTING COOLER PACIFIC AIR INTO THE CENTRAL CALIFORNIA INTERIOR.
&&
.HNX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...WIND ADVISORY FOR THE KERN COUNTY
MOUNTAINS AND DESERTS THROUGH 400 AM WEDNESDAY.
&&
JSN/MVHazardous weather outlook, May 11, 4:00 AM PST, 45 minutes before
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY - HANFORD CA 500 AM PDT TUE MAY 11 2004 CAZ089>094-096-097-121200- WEST CENTRAL SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY-EAST CENTRAL SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY- SOUTHWESTERN SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY-SOUTHEASTERN SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY- MARIPOSA MADERA AND FRESNO COUNTY FOOTHILLS-TULARE COUNTY FOOTHILLS- SIERRA NEVADA FROM YOSEMITE TO KINGS CANYON-TULARE COUNTY MOUNTAINS- 500 AM PDT TUE MAY 11 2004 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. SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS TO THEIR LOCAL NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE. CAZ095-098-099-121200- KERN COUNTY MOUNTAINS-INDIAN WELLS VALLEY- SOUTHEASTERN KERN COUNTY DESERT- 500 AM PDT TUE MAY 11 2004 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE KERN COUNTY MOUNTAINS... THE INDIAN WELLS VALLEY AND THE SOUTHEASTERN KERN COUNTY DESERT. .DAY ONE...TODAY A WIND ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 4 AM PDT WEDNESDAY...FOR THE KERN COUNTY MOUNTAINS...THE INDIAN WELLS VALLEY AND THE SOUTHEASTERN KERN COUNTY DESERT. REFER TO THE LATEST WEATHER MESSAGE / WWUS76 KHNX / FOR FURTHER DETAILS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY THE WIND ADVISORY WILL REMAIN IN EFFECT UNTIL 4 AM PDT WEDNESDAY... FOR THE KERN COUNTY MOUNTAINS...THE INDIAN WELLS VALLEY AND THE SOUTHEASTERN KERN COUNTY DESERT. REFER TO THE LATEST WEATHER MESSAGE / WWUS76 KHNX / FOR FURTHER DETAILS. 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, Kern Cty Mtns
- When
- May 11, 11:53 AM PST to May 12, 3:00 AM PST
- Where
- Kern Cty Mtns forecast zone
- Measured
- 54 kt (62 mph) measured gust
- Property damage
- $1,000
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Strong Wind, Indian Wells Vly
- When
- May 11, 3:56 PM PST to May 12, 3:00 AM PST
- Where
- Indian Wells Vly forecast zone
- Measured
- 41 kt (47 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
- Rip Current in Florida, May 11, 2004
- Ice Storm in North Dakota, May 11 to 12, 2004
- Tornadoes and Damaging Winds in Texas, May 11, 2004
- Tornadoes and Hail in Minnesota, May 11 to 12, 2004
- Hail and Damaging Wind in Missouri, May 11, 2004
- Tornadoes and Hail in Texas, May 11, 2004
- Damaging Wind in Louisiana, May 11, 2004
- Hail and Damaging Wind in Michigan, May 11, 2004
- Hail and Damaging Winds in South Dakota, May 11, 2004
- Hail and Damaging Winds in North Dakota, May 11, 2004
- Damaging Wind in Texas, May 11, 2004
- Rip Current in Florida, May 11, 2004
More
Every storm in California in 2004Every state in 2004This day in weather historyWarnings in California, May 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: 5393534, 5393532, 5393533.