California, 2005

Flash Flood in California, May 5, 2005

May 5, 2005 · NWS HNX · 1 event in 1 county or zone

1 flash flood, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
1

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 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 5, 1:33 PM PST, 4 hours 10 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 5, 1:33 PM PST, 4 hours 10 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HANFORD CA
233 PM PDT THU MAY 5 2005

.SHORT TERM...FOR THE CENTRAL CALIFORNIA INTERIOR...
SATELLITE PICTURES INDICATE THE CORE OF AN UPPER LEVEL TROUGH JUST
OFF THE CENTRAL COAST. WATER VAPOR CHANNEL SHOWS THE DEEPER MID TO
UPPER LEVEL MOISTURE OVER THE CENTRAL CALIFORNIA INTERIOR. WEATHER
RADAR SHOWS THE MORE WIDESPREAD CONVECTIVE ACTIVITY ALONG THE
FOOTHILLS AND SIRRRA AS WELL AS THE TEHACHAPIS. TOWARDS THE WEST
SIDE OF THE VALLEY STORMS ARE STRONGER BUT LESS WIDESPREAD. EXPECT
SCATTERED STORM ACTIVITY TO CONTINUE INTO THE EVENING HOURS AS THE
AXIS OF THE UPPER TROUGH AND COLD CORE MOVES INTO THE VALLEY.
POTENTIAL FOR WIDESPREAD HEAVY RAIN WILL DIMINISH DURING THE EVENING
AS STORMS BECOME MORE SCATTERED. HOWEVER DURING THE EARLY EVENING
SOME OF THE STORMS COULD BECOME SEVERE WITH LARGE HAIL AND LOCALLY
HEAVY RAIN. THUS WILL CONTINUE WITH THE URBAN AND SMALL STREAM FLOOD
ADVISORY FOR THE VALLEY AND FOOTHILLS. WILL LEAVE IN PLACE THE
WINTER STORM WARNING IN PLACE. FOR POSSIBLE ADDITIONAL SNOW AMOUNTS
TONIGHT OF 3 TO 5 INCHES AT  7000 FEET AND ABOVE. TEMPERATURES
ACTUALLY COOL DURING THE DAY WITH LIMITED DIURNAL HEATING AND COOLER
AIR MOVING INTO THE VALLEY.  MAXIMUM TEMPERATURES FOR MANY VALLEY
LOCALES WERE PROBABLY SET NEAR MIDNIGHT. FOR FRIDAY WILL CONTINUE
WITH LOW CHANCE OF SHOWERS DEVELOPING ESPECIALLY ALONG THE FOOTHILLS
AND MOUNTAINS DURING THE AFTERNOON BUT THE STRONGER DYNAMICS TO
TRIGGER ANY STORMS WILL BE PUSHING SOUTHWARD TOWARDS SOUTH
CALIFORNIA AREA. OTHERWISE A DRY AND WARMING TREND FOR MUCH OF THE
WEEKEND WITH A SLIGHT RISK OF PRECIPITION ON SUNDAY AFTERNOOON
MAINLY NORTH OF FRESNO AS THE NEXT STORM SYSTEM MOVES INTO NORTH
CALIFORNIA.

.LONG TERM...SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY...MODELS ARE IN FAIRLY
GOOD AGREEMENT IN BRINGING MOISTURE AND JET DYNAMICS INTO CENTRAL CA
SUNDAY NIGHT AS THE UPPER LOW DEEPENS ALONG THE OREGON COAST. MODELS
CONTINUE TO FORECAST THE CENTER OF THE 50H LOW AND THE COLDEST POOL
OF AIR ALOFT TO REMAIN ACROSS NRN CA MONDAY AFTN. STILL...WITH
MUCH OF OUR CWA ENTERING THE LEFT FRONT QUADRANT OF THE UPPER LEVEL
JET BY THEN...THERE IS STILL A POSSIBILITY OF A FEW THUNDERSTORMS.
GFS AND ECMWF ARE FASTER THAN THE OTHER MEDIUM RANGE MODELS IN
MOVING THIS SYSTEM OUT ON TUESDAY. THIS WOULD BRING DRY WEATHER
TUESDAY WHILE THE ULMET AND CANADIAN SOLUTIONS WOULD HOLD ONTO A
CHANCE OF SHOWERS IN A MOIST CYCLONIC FLOW. WITH A NORTHWEST
FLOW...WILL HOLD ONTO A SLIGHT CHANCE OF SHOWERS JUST IN THE SIERRA
TUESDAY AND DRY ELSEWHERE. A RIDGE BUILD IN FROM THE EASTERN PACIFIC
WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY FOR A WARMING TREND.

&&

.HNX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...WINTER STORM WARNING FOR THE
     SOUTHERN SIERRA UNTIL MIDNIGHT TONIGHT.

     URBAN AND SMALL STREAM FLOOD ADVISORY FOR THE SAN JOAQUIN
     VALLEY AND FOOTHILLS UNTIL 8 PM...

&&

WWW.WEATHER.GOV/HANFORD /USE ALL LOWER CASE/

MV/BEAN
Hazardous weather outlook, May 5, 3:20 PM PST, 2 hours 23 minutes before
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY - HANFORD CA
420 PM PDT THU MAY 5 2005

CAZ095-098-099-061230-
INDIAN WELLS VALLEY-KERN COUNTY MOUNTAINS-
SOUTHEASTERN KERN COUNTY DESERT-
420 PM PDT THU MAY 5 2005

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE INDIAN WELLS VALLEY...
THE SOUTHEASTERN KERN COUNTY DESERT...AND THE KERN COUNTY MOUNTAINS.

.DAY ONE...TODAY

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY

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 OFFICE.

CAZ096-097-061230-
SIERRA NEVADA FROM YOSEMITE TO KINGS CANYON-TULARE COUNTY MOUNTAINS-
420 PM PDT THU MAY 5 2005

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE SOUTHERN SIERRA NEVADA AND
THE TULARE COUNTY MOUNTAINS.

.DAY ONE...TODAY

A WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT TONIGHT.
PLEASE REFER TO THE LATEST WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE /WWUS46 KHNX/ FOR
FURTHER DETAILS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY

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 OFFICE.

CAZ089>094-061230-
EAST CENTRAL SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY-
MARIPOSA MADERA AND FRESNO COUNTY FOOTHILLS-
SOUTHEASTERN SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY-SOUTHWESTERN SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY-
TULARE COUNTY FOOTHILLS-WEST CENTRAL SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY-
420 PM PDT THU MAY 5 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 IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM.
PLEASE REFER TO THE LATEST FLOOD STATEMENT /WGUS86 KHNX/ FOR FURTHER
DETAILS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY

THERE IS A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS MONDAY AFTERNOON.
OTHERWISE...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 OFFICE.

TLM

In the hours before

Special weather statement, May 5, 2:54 PM PST, 2 hours 49 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY - HANFORD CA
354 PM PDT THU MAY 5 2005

CAZ089-091-060100-
SOUTHWESTERN SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY-WEST CENTRAL SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY-
354 PM PDT THU MAY 5 2005

...ISOLATED FUNNEL CLOUDS OBSERVED OVER FRESNO AND KINGS COUNTIES...

A PACIFIC STORM MOVING THROUGH CENTRAL CALIFORNIA HAS BROUGHT
SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TO THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN SAN
JOAQUIN VALLEY. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BRING BRIEF HEAVY RAIN...
LIGHTNING...PEA SIZE HAIL AND GUSTY WINDS. THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE
WEST SIDE OF THE VALLEY HAVE SPAWNED A FEW FUNNEL CLOUDS...MAINLY
OVER WESTERN FRESNO AND KINGS COUNTIES. THESE FUNNEL CLOUDS
DISSIPATED WITHOUT TOUCHING THE GROUND. THE THUNDERSTORMS ARE MOVING
SOUTHEAST AT 15 MPH...AND MAY SPAWN A FEW ADDITIONAL FUNNEL CLOUDS.
THESE FUNNEL CLOUDS WILL BE SHORT LIVED...AND OFTEN WILL REMAIN ABOVE
THE GROUND. HOWEVER...A FUNNEL CLOUD MAY BRIEFLY TOUCH DOWN AND
BECOME A TORNADO...WITH THE POTENTIAL TO CAUSE INJURY OR DAMAGE.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...OR YOUR FAVORITE NEWS SOURCE...
FOR FURTHER UPDATES REGARDING THIS WEATHER SITUATION.

WWW.WEATHER.GOV/HANFORD /USE ALL LOWER CASE/

SANGER

The radar

The San Joaquin Valley radar (KHNX), 68 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 01:41 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Fresno

When
May 5, 5:43 PM PST to 8:45 PM PST
Where
Fresno County, Coalinga
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
36.150, -120.367

Coalinga Police Department reported "all roads in town are flooded with some impassable" due to runoff from nearby mountains and ponding water from thunderstorms early in the evening of the 5th. The city reported 1.38" of rain falling from mid-afternoon to early evening.

What these are

Flash Flood
Flooding that begins within six hours of the rain that causes it, or of a dam or levee failure or ice jam release, often with deadly speed.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in California in 2005Every state in 2005This day in weather historyWarnings in California, May 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: 5449082.