Winter Storm in California, January 2 to 4, 2005

Name: Winter Storm in California, January 2 to 4, 2005
Start: 2005-01-02T12:00
End: 2005-01-04T04:00
Location: California

January 2 to 4, 2005 · NWS HNX · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

Significant precipitation event for Interior Central California with large amounts of snow received at the higher elevations: 12 inches of new snow at Shaver Lake; 14" at Tehachapi; 18" at Chilkoot Meadow, Tamarack Summit, and Grant Grove; and 28" to 36" of snow around Frazier Park in the Kern County Mountains between Bakersfield and Los Angeles. The snow around Frazier Park closed the major…

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
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.

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 Jan 2, 8:20 AM PST, 3 hours 40 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 2, 8:20 AM PST, 3 hours 40 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HANFORD CA
820 AM PST SUN JAN 2 2005

.SHORT TERM...FOR THE CENTRAL CALIFORNIA INTERIOR...CONSIDER THIS
MORNING THE CALM BEFORE THE NEXT STORM. WINDS ARE RELATIVELY LIGHT
ACROSS THE ENTIRE CWA AND THERE ARE ENOUGH BREAKS IN THE CLOUDS
TO ALLOW FOR SOME SUNSHINE. THE WEATHER WILL DETERIORATE THIS
AFTERNOON AS MOISTURE FROM THE NEXT STORM SWEEPS INTO THE CENTRAL
CA INTERIOR. THE STORM IS CURRENTLY LOCATED OFF THE OREGON COAST
AND SATELLITE LOOPS INDICATE THAT IT HAS DEEPENED RAPIDLY DURING
THE PAST SEVERAL HOURS.

THE MODELS ARE IN GOOD AGREEMENT THIS MORNING AND FORECAST THIS
STORM TRACK SOUTHWARD AND BE SITUATED OFF THE CENTRAL CA COAST BY
12Z MON. CONSEQUENTLY...THE MOIST...BAROCLINIC ZONE NOW IN PLACE
ACROSS NORTHERN CA WILL SHIFT SOUTHWARD TODAY AND BE DIRECTLY
OVER OUR CWA FROM LATE THIS AFTN THRU MONDAY MORNING. DURING THIS
TIME...OROGRAPHICS REMAIN IMPRESSIONABLE OVER THE SOUTHERN SIERNEV
BUT AS WINDS ALOFT BACK FROM SOUTHWEST TO A MORE SOUTHERLY DIRECTION
MONDAY...THE FOCUS OF HEAVY OROGRAPHIC PRECIP WILL SHIFT TO THE
TEHACHAPI MTNS. SIMILAR TO THE LAST STORM...THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS
OF THIS REGION COULD GET CLOBBERED BY HEAVY SNOW MONDAY MORNING.

THE GFS FINALLY BRINGS THIS STORM INLAND ACROSS KERN COUNTY MONDAY
NIGHT WITH FURTHER MIGRATION EASTWARD TOWARD THE GREAT BASIN
TUESDAY. DURING THIS TIME...MAJOR PRECIP WILL BE OVER YET MUCH OF
CENTRAL CA WILL REMAIN TRAPPED WITHIN THE MOIST CIRCULATION OF
THIS STORM. IN FACT...THE GFS FORECASTS SOME BACKLASH PRECIP TO
MOVE BACK INTO THE CENTRAL CA INTERIOR TUESDAY AFTN AND EVENING.

ALL IN ALL...THE CURRENT FORECAST PKG LOOKS ON TRACK AND NO UPDATES
ARE ANTICIPATED THIS MORNING.

.LONG TERM...FROM PREVIOUS DISCUSSION...FOR TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH
SATURDAY...THE MEDIUM RANGE MODELS ARE IN BETTER AGREEMENT TODAY.
UNFORTUNATELY THE MODELS ARE TRENDING TOWARDS A DRIER SCENARIO
DURING THE EARLY PART OF THE EXTENDED PERIOD. MODELS INDICATE AN
UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL DEVELOP OFF THE NORTH CALIFORNIA COAST TUESDAY
NIGHT AND SLOWLY MOVE SOUTH AS AN UPPER UPPER RIDGE BUILDS BEHIND IT
OVER THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY. THE MODELS PROG
THE LOCATION OF THE LOW WELL OFFSHORE AND THE DEEPER MOISTURE AND
DYNAMICS MAY REMAIN TOWARDS THE COAST. THIS WILL DECREASE THE
POTENTIAL FOR PRECIPITATION ACROSS THE CENTRAL CALIFORNIA INTERIOR
THROUGH THURSDAY. THE UPPER RIDGE IN THE EAST PACIFIC RETROGRADES
FRIDAY GIVING WAY FOR AN UPPER LOW TO DROP DOWN THE BRITISH COLOMBIA
COAST INTO THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST. THIS WILL BRING A BETTER THREAT OF
PRECIPITATION OVER NORTHERN CALIFORNIA FRIDAY AND SPREAD INTO
CENTRAL CALIFORNIA SATURDAY.

&&

.HNX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...WINTER STORM WARNING FOR THE
     SOUTHERN SIERRA NEVADA NORTH OF KERN COUNTY THIS AFTERNOON
     THROUGH MONDAY...
  ...WINTER STORM WATCH FOR THE KERN COUNTY MOUNTAINS TONIGHT
     THROUGH MONDAY.

DURFEE/MV

Hazardous weather outlook, Jan 2, 11:00 AM PST, 1 hour before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY - HANFORD CA
1100 AM PST SUN JAN 2 2005

CAZ089>094-031300-
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-
1100 AM PST SUN JAN 2 2005

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN SAN
JOAQUIN VALLEY AND ADJACENT FOOTHILLS.

.DAY ONE...TODAY

AN URBAN AND SMALL STREAM FLOOD ADVISORY HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR THE
CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY FOR 6 PM TODAY UNTIL 10 AM
MONDAY. PLEAS SEE THE LATEST FLOOD STATEMENT /WGUS86 KHNX/ FOR
FURTHER DETAILS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY

THE URBAN AND SMALL STREAM FLOOD ADVISORY WILL REMAIN IN EFFECT
UNTIL 10 AM MONDAY. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED FOR THE
REMAINDER OF THE PERIOD AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

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

CAZ095>097-031300-
KERN COUNTY MOUNTAINS-SIERRA NEVADA FROM YOSEMITE TO KINGS CANYON-
TULARE COUNTY MOUNTAINS-
1100 AM PST SUN JAN 2 2005

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE SOUTHERN SIERRA NEVADA
FROM YOSEMITE  TO KINGS CANYON...THE TULARE COUNTY MOUNTAINS SOUTH TO
INCLUDE THE KERN COUNTY MOUNTAINS.

.DAY ONE...TODAY

THE WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM NOON TO 6 PM
MONDAY. PLEASE REFER TO THE LATEST WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE /WWUS46
KHNX/ FOR FURTHER DETAILS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY

THE WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 PM MONDAY.

OTHERWISE NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED FOR THE REMAINDER OF
THE PERIOD AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

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

CAZ098-099-031300-
INDIAN WELLS VALLEY-SOUTHEASTERN KERN COUNTY DESERT-
1100 AM PST SUN JAN 2 2005

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE KERN COUNTY DESERTS.

.DAY ONE...TODAY

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.DAY TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

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

PJ

Event by event

3 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, S Sierra Mtns

When: January 2, 12:00 PM PST to January 4, 4:00 AM PST
Where: S Sierra Mtns forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Tulare Cty Mtns

When: January 2, 12:00 PM PST to January 4, 4:00 AM PST
Where: Tulare Cty Mtns forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Kern Cty Mtns

When: January 3, 12:00 AM PST to 3:17 PM PST
Where: Kern Cty Mtns forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

What these are

Winter Storm: A storm that brought snow, sleet or freezing rain at warning levels, usually over several hours or days.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in California in 2005 Every state in 2005 This day in weather history Warnings in California, January 2005

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: 5438252, 5438253, 5438254.