1 wildfire, as filed by the National Weather Service.
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 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 14, 1:35 PM PST, 1 hour 25 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY - HANFORD CA 235 PM PDT SUN MAY 14 2006 .SHORT TERM...HIGH CLOUDS ARE BEGINNING TO MOVE ONSHORE AS THE TROPICAL MOISTURE ARRIVES. THUS FAR, SKIES HAVE BEEN SUNNY AND TEMPERATURES ARE RUNNING WARMER OVER THE MOUNTAINS, HOWEVER OVER THE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY AND KERN DESERT AREAS, LINGERING EFFECTS OF MARINE AIR IS KEEPING TRENDS DOWN FROM 2-3 DEGREES OVER SATURDAY. AS STATED THIS MORNING, THE MAIN FORECAST CHALLENGE IN THE SHORT TERM IS WHETHER THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP OR NOT FROM THE INCOMING TROPICAL MOISTURE FETCH AND SHORTWAVE TROUGH. THUS FAR THE SYSTEM IS HOLDING TOGETHER PRETTY WELL AND LATEST VISIBLE IMAGERY SHOWS A CONTINUED CELLULAR APPEARANCE NEAR THE VORTICITY CENTER WHICH IS NOW AROUND 350 MILES SOUTHWEST OF POINT CONCEPTION. ALTHOUGH NOT TOO GREAT, I FEEL THERE IS A REAL THREAT OF ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS BEGINNING AFTER MIDNIGHT TONIGHT FROM KERN COUNTY NORTHWARD AS THE SHORTWAVE, VORTICITY CENTER AND DEEPEST MOISTURE ARRIVE OVERNIGHT AND MONDAY MORNING. LATEST RUN OF THE NAM12 MODEL SHOWS LOTS OF INSTABILITY MONDAY OVER THE AREA AND AT THE MINIMUM, SKIES WILL BE PARTLY CLOUDY. MODELS PUSH THE SHORTWAVE AND DEEPEST MOISTURE OFF TO THE NORTHEAST ON MONDAY NIGHT AND THEN BUILD IN A STRONG ANTICYCLONE (HIGH PRESSURE CENTER) OVER THE GREAT BASIN AND NORTHERN MEXICO FOR TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY. SHOULD SEE THE WARMEST TEMPERATURES OF THE YEAR BY WEDNESDAY WITH A FEW LOCATIONS SEEING THE FIRST 100 DEGREE READINGS OF THE YEAR. CONCERNING MELTING SNOW PACK AND THE FLOODING ALONG THE MERCED RIVER IN YOSEMITE, TONIGHTS CLOUDS SHOULD KEEP MINIMUM TEMPERATURES IN THE SNOW COVERED REGIONS HIGHER THAN THE PAST FEW NIGHTS. THIS COMBINED WITH THE WARMING FROM THE BUILDING RIDGE WILL LIKELY INCREASE SNOW MELT RATES FOR THE NEXT FEW DAYS. HAVE ISSUED A RIVER FLOOD WARNING FOR THE MERCED AT POHONO BRIDGE IN YOSEMITE BASED ON LAST NIGHTS FLOW AND THE EXPECTED INCREASE IN SNOW MELT. WILL NEED TO KEEP A WATCH ON ANY THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT OVER THE WATERSHED AS THIS WOULD EXACERBATE THE SITUATION WITH INCREASED FLOW. .LONG TERM...FOR WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY...MEDIUM RANGE MODELS IN GOOD AGREEMENT INDICATING WARM AND DRY CONDITIONS CONTINUING EARLY IN THE PERIOD THEN A GRADUAL COOLING OFF FOR THE WEEKEND. A STRONG RIDGE OVER THE WESTERN U.S WILL PROVIDE DRY CONDITIONS AND ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES INTO THRUSDAY. EXCEPT FOR THE CANADIAN GEM, MOST MODELS PROG FOR THE RIDGE TO WEAKEN AND FLATTEN AS SHORT WAVE ENERGY MOVES THROUGH BRITISH COLOMBIA, WHILE AN UPPER TROF MEANDERING OVER THE EASTERN PACIFIC EDGES CLOSER TO THE WEST COAST. THIS WILL LEAD TO AN INCREASING SOUTHWEST FLOW ALOFT WHICH WILL BRING COOLER MARITIME AIRMASS INTO NORTH AND CENTRAL CALIFORNIA FOR THE WEEKEND. THE WARM TEMPERATURES WILL KEEP THE CONCERN OF HIGH...FAST AND COLD RUNNING RIVERS AND STREAMS DUE TO MELTING SNOW AT A HEIGHTEN STATE OF CAUTION. && .AVIATION...LIGHTNING ACTIVITY WILL BE POSSIBLE AFTER 07Z MONDAY AS AN UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE AND SUBTROPICAL MOISTURE MOVES ONSHORE TONIGHT. ANY THUNDERSTORMS THAT DEVELOP ARE EXPECTED TO BE DRY OR PROVIDE LITTLE RAINFALL AS AVAILABLE MOISTURE WILL BE LIMITED TO THE MID AND UPPER LEVELS OF THE ATMOSPHERE. OTHERWISE VFR CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED THROUGH 00Z TUESDAY. FOR SPECIFIC DETAILS...PLEASE REFER TO TAFS FOR KMCE...KFAT AND KBFL. && .HNX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...FLOOD WARNING FOR THE MERCED RIVER AT POHONO BRIDGE UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE. && DUDLEY/MV
1 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.
The Torch Fire located 5 miles west of Coalinga in Fresno County was man-caused and burned 4500 acres before containment. No structures were lost nor was anyone injured in suppressing the fire. There was no cost given for fighting the fire.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2006Every state in 2006This day in weather historyWarnings in California, May 2006
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: 5509842.