The second of two fast moving winter storms brought an additional one to two feet of snow to the higher elevations of most mountain areas. Winds were also strong, gusting to 50 to 60 mph through the passes.
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 episode as NWS STO wrote it up.
The second of two fast moving winter storms brought an additional one to two feet of snow to the higher elevations of most mountain areas. Winds were also strong, gusting to 50 to 60 mph through the passes.
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 Sacramento, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 19, 10:15 AM PST, 2 hours 45 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SACRAMENTO CA 1015 AM PST WED DEC 19 2007 .DISCUSSION... SATELLITE IMAGERY HAS INCREASING CLOUD COVER OVER NORTHERN CALIFORNIA FROM APPROACHING PACIFIC SYSTEM. RADAR SHOWS OVERRUNNING PRECIPITATION AHEAD OF FRONTAL BOUNDARY ALONG THE NORTHWESTERN CALIFORNIA COAST...WITH LIGHT RETURNS EXTENDING INTO NORTHERN SHASTA COUNTY. COLD FRONT WILL MOVE ONSHORE LATER THIS AFTERNOON AND MOVE THROUGH THE FORECAST AREA OVERNIGHT. EXPECTING SNOW LEVELS WITH SOME WARM AIR AHEAD OF SYSTEM TO REMAIN AROUND 4000 FEET FOR MUCH OF TODAY. GFS HAS 1000-500MB THICKNESS LEVELS OVER SHASTA COUNTY CURRENTLY AROUND 544 WITH 700 MB TEMPS AROUND -5 C...DROPPING TO AROUND 535 AND -10 C BY 12Z TOMORROW...528 DAM AND -14 C BY 18Z...BRINGING SNOW LEVELS TO BELOW 3000 FEET FOR SHASTA COUNTY AND THE COASTAL RANGE DURING THE DAY THURSDAY. SNOW LEVELS FOR THE SIERRA AND SOUTHERN CASCADES WILL BE AROUND 4500 TO 5000 FEET TODAY...DROPPING BELOW 4000 FEET TONIGHT. THE SOUTHERN CASCADES WILL BE AROUND 2500-3000 FEET FOR THURSDAY...3000-3500 FOR THE NORTHERN SIERRA. AMSU PW AMOUNTS ARE 1.00-1.25 INCHES...PROVIDING A GOOD MOISTURE TAP AS THE SHORTWAVE MOVES IN. QPF AMOUNTS LOOKING HIGHER FOR THE SHASTA COUNTY...THE SOUTHERN CASCADES AND THE SIERRA NORTH OF I-80...WITH MAYBE UP TO THREE FEET POSSIBLE OVER HIGHER ELEVATIONS. PRESSURE GRADIENT AND WINDS ALOFT LOOK MORE FAVORABLE FOR GUSTY WINDS IN THE MOUNTAINS...REACHING AROUND 55 MPH OVER RIDGES. HAVE ADJUSTED SKY COVER TO SCALE BACK MORNING CLOUDS OVER SOUTHERN ZONES AND TO INCREASE WINDS FOR TODAY AND TONIGHT. HAVE INCREASED POPS OVER COASTAL RANGE AND SHASTA COUNTY WHERE SOME RADAR RETURNS ARE ALREADY SHOWING UP. UPDATE WILL BE OUT SHORTLY. .PREVIOUS DISCUSSION... TAIL END OF SHORTWAVE TROUGH MOVING THROUGH THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST DURING THE NIGHT BROUGHT SOME CLOUDINESS TO THE NORTHERN FORECAST AREA DURING THE NIGHT AND EVEN A FEW HUNDREDTHS OF AN INCH OF RAIN TO THE REDDING AREA. WARM FRONTAL CLOUDINESS AHEAD OF ANOTHER FRONTAL SYSTEM NOW CROSSING 130 WEST ALREADY SPREADING OVER THE NORTHERN CWA. THIS CLOUDINESS HAS HELPED KEEP PATCHY FOG WHICH FORMED IN THE CENTRAL VALLEY DURING THE NIGHT FROM BECOMING SIGNIFICANTLY ESTABLISHED. 140KT JET CURRENTLY TRACKING INTO FAR NORTHERN CALIFORNIA WILL BRING OFFSHORE FRONTAL SYSTEM RAPIDLY TOWARDS NORTHERN CALIFORNIA. MODELS BRING WARM SECTOR PRECIP INTO NORCAL BY MID DAY TODAY WITH THE FRONT MOVING ONTO THE NORTH COAST BY THIS AFTERNOON. FRONTAL SYSTEM IS FORECAST TO MOVE THROUGH NORCAL DURING THE NIGHT DROPPING SOUTHEAST INTO THE SIERRA BY 12Z THURSDAY MORNING AS UPPER JET SAGS TO THE SOUTH. SNOW LEVELS SHOULD FALL RAPIDLY DURING THE NIGHT AS COLDER AIR MAKES IT INTO THE AREA WITH SNOW LEVELS EXPECTED TO DROP BELOW 2000 FEET OVER THE NORTHERN ZONES BY MORNING. SUFFICIENT QPF EXPECTED TO UPGRADE WINTER STORM WATCH TO A WARNING. TIGHT 700 MB GRADIENT SHOULD MAKE FOR GUSTY WINDS OVER THE RIDGETOPS. 8 MB SURFACE GRADIENT FROM MFR TO SAC SHOULD MAKE FOR BREEZY CONDITIONS AT THE LOWER ELEVATIONS AS WELL BUT CURRENT PROGS KEEP WINDS IN THE NORTHERN SAC VALLEY UNDER ADVISORY CRITERIA. BY THURSDAY NIGHT...UPPER RIDGE BUILDS OVER THE WEST COAST BRINGING A DRYING PERIOD. UPPER RIDGE IS FLATTENED BY SYSTEM MOVING THROUGH PACIFIC NORTHWEST ON SATURDAY NIGHT BUT SYSTEM WILL BE LIFTED NORTHWARD BY RIDGE AND ONLY FORECAST TO BRING PRECIP THREAT TO FAR NORTHERN ZONES. STRONGER SYSTEM FORECAST TO MOVE INTO PACIFIC NORTHWEST AND NORCAL CHRISTMAS EVE BUT STILL WEAK IN COMPARISON TO CURRENT SYSTEM AND WILL LIKELY ONLY BRING PRECIP THREAT TO NORTHERN ZONES. CHRISTMAS DAY LOOKS DRY AT THIS POINT IN TIME UNDER UPPER RIDGE WITH LIGHT TO MODERATE NORTHERLY SURFACE GRADIENT. WINTER BEGINS AT 10:08 PM FRIDAY DECEMBER 21ST. SG && .AVIATION... VFR CONDITIONS PREVAIL AHEAD OF THE NEXT WEATHER SYSTEM WITH AREAS OF MVFR AND LOCAL IFR CONDITIONS IN THE MOUNTAINS AND VALLEYS THIS MORNING FROM LOW CLOUDS AND FOG WHICH SHOULD BE LIFTING AROUND 18Z. RAIN FROM THE LATEST STORM WILL START IN THE NORTH AROUND 18Z THEN MIGRATE SOUTH THROUGH THE DAY RESULTING IN PREDOMINATELY MVFR TYPE CONDITIONS DUE TO CEILINGS AND VISIBILITIES FROM RAIN AND FOG. THE WINDS WILL PICK UP THIS AFTERNOON FROM THE SOUTH, WITH LOCAL GUSTS IN THE MOUNTAINS TO 45 KNOTS, AND 30 TO 40 KNOTS OVER THE NORTHERN SACRAMENTO VALLEY. && .STO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...WINTER STORM WARNING FOR THE MOUNTAINS OF WESTERN SHASTA COUNTY SOUTHWARD TO NORTHERN LAKE COUNTY FOR NOON TODAY THROUGH 10 AM THURSDAY. ...WINTER STORM WARNING FOR EASTERN SHASTA COUNTY...AND THE SIERRA CASCADE RANGE FROM 4 PM THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH 4 PM THURSDAY AFTERNOON. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SACRAMENTO CA 700 AM PST WED DEC 19 2007 CAZ013>019-063-064-066>069-201500- SHASTA LAKE AREA/NORTHERN SHASTA COUNTY- BURNEY BASIN/EASTERN SHASTA COUNTY-NORTHERN SACRAMENTO VALLEY- CENTRAL SACRAMENTO VALLEY-SOUTHERN SACRAMENTO VALLEY- CARQUINEZ STRAIT AND DELTA-NORTHERN SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY- MOUNTAINS SOUTHWESTERN SHASTA TO NORTHERN LAKE COUNTIES- CLEAR LAKE/SOUTHERN LAKE COUNTY-MOTHERLODE- EAST FOOTHILLS/NORTH SACRAMENTO VALLEY- WESTERN PLUMAS COUNTY/LASSEN PARK-WEST SLOPE NORTHERN SIERRA NEVADA- 700 AM PST WED DEC 19 2007 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR INTERIOR NORTHERN CALIFORNIA. .DAY ONE...TODAY A PACIFIC STORM SYSTEM MOVING INTO NORTHERN CALIFORNIA THIS AFTERNOON WILL BRING GUSTY WINDS AND MOUNTAIN SNOW TO NORTHERN CALIFORNIA THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. * WINTER STORM WARNING.......SEE WWUS46 KSTO - WSWSTO FOR DETAILS * .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN... THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY THE PACIFIC FRONTAL SYSTEM WILL MOVING INTO THE SIERRA NEVADA THURSDAY MORNING. SNOW LEVELS WILL DROP SIGNIFICANTLY AND POSSIBLY BELOW 2000 FEET OVER THE NORTHERN MOUNTAINS. SNOWFALL SHOULD CONTINUE THROUGH MOST OF THE DAY THURSDAY OVER THE SIERRA CASCADE RANGE. AFTER THIS SYSTEM MOVES EAST OF THE REGION NO OTHER HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED THROUGH THE EXTENDED PERIOD. * WINTER STORM WARNING.......SEE WWUS46 KSTO - WSWSTO FOR DETAILS * .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS TO THEIR LOCAL NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE. THE LATEST WEATHER INFORMATION IS AVAILABLE ON THE INTERNET AT (LOWER CASE): HTTP://WWW.WRH.NOAA.GOV/STO
5 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.
The snow level dropped to near 2000 feet with twelve to eighteen inches of snow falling at the higher elevations. Wind gusts reached 60 mph.
The snow level dropped to near 2000 feet with one to two feet of snow falling at the higher elevations. Wind gusts reached 60 mph.
The snow level dropped to the basin floor with twelve to eighteen inches of snow falling at the higher elevations. Wind gusts reached 50 mph.
The snow level dropped to near 2000 feet with one to two feet of snow falling at the higher elevations. Wind gusts reached 50 mph.
The snow level dropped to near 2500 feet with one to two feet of snow falling at the higher elevations. Wind gusts reached 50 mph.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2007Every state in 2007This day in weather historyWarnings in California, December 2007
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: 111559, 111557, 111558, 111560, 111561.