A cool storm system with rain and thick cloud cover kept daily maximum temperatures over the northern Sacramento Valley in the upper 30s on December 28th and 29th. Daily low maximum temperature records were set in both Redding and Red Bluff on December 29th.
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.
A cool storm system with rain and thick cloud cover kept daily maximum temperatures over the northern Sacramento Valley in the upper 30s on December 28th and 29th. Daily low maximum temperature records were set in both Redding and Red Bluff on December 29th.
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 28, 9:35 PM PST, 2 hours 25 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SACRAMENTO CA 935 PM PST FRI DEC 28 2007 UPDATE TO AVIATION DISCUSSION .DISCUSSION... ORIGINALLY HAD CONCERNS OF AREAS OF FREEZING DRIZZLE IN THE NRN SIERRA FOOTHILLS AS PRECIP OVERRUNS WARM FRONTAL BOUNDARY AND FALLS INTO TRAPPED COLD AIR IN VALLEYS. THE RADAR HAS SHOWN LIGHT PRECIPITATION THAT HAS SPREAD ACROSS THE VALLEY AND INTO THE FOOTHILLS. SNOW OR FREEZING DRIZZLE NOT REALLY A PROBLEM IN THE FOOTHILLS AS FAR AS AN ADVISORY IS CONCERNED. TEMPS IN THE REGION ARE JUST ABOVE FREEZING AND HAVE BEEN THAT WAY MOST OF THE EVENING. A SPOTTER IN MAGALIA...ELEV 2200 FT...REPORTED ONLY FINE MIST AND 38 DEG F AS OF 830 PM. SO THIS INDICATES THAT INDEED THE SNOW LEVELS ARE ON THE RISE. FURTHER SOUTH IN THE MOTHERLODE AT CAMINO...ELEV 3100 FT...A SPOTTER REPORTED 38 DEG F AND A BIT HEAVIER RAIN. ANOTHER SPOTTER IN BURNEY REPORTED 1/2 INCH OF NEW SNOW WITH TEMPS IN THE UPPER 20S. OUR RADAR IS NOT PICKING UP ANY PRECIPITATION RETURNS OVER WRN PLUMAS AND ERN SHASTA COUNTIES BECAUSE OF RADAR BEAM BLOCKAGES DUE TO THE NRN SIERRA NEVADA. WE STILL HAVE THE SNOW ADVISORY VALID FOR THE EAST SLOPES OF COASTAL MOUNTAINS AND THE BURNEY BASIN OF EASTERN SHASTA COUNTY THROUGH 4AM SATURDAY ABOVE 2500 FEET...ALSO FOR WESTERN SHASTA COUNTY UNTIL 10AM SATURDAY ABOVE 3000 FEET. WE HAVE HAD SOME REPORTS OF LIGHT SNOW IN THE AREAS SURROUNDING REDDING AS THE COLDER AIR IS STILL TRAPPED NEAR THE SURFACE...BUT THE SNOW IS NOT STICKING TO THE GROUND. SNOW LEVELS WILL CONTINUE TO RISE THROUGHOUT THE NIGHT AS THE WARM FRONT APPROACHES...SO EXPECT MIXED SNOW TO TRANSITION TO RAIN AS WARM FRONT WILL TEND TO SQUEEZE THE COLD AIR OUT OF THE VALLEY TONIGHT. EXPECT MOST PRECIPITATION TO BE LIGHT WITH AREAS OF HEAVIER PRECIP ALONG THE WRN SLOPES OF THE SIERRA...ESPECIALLY IN FOOTHILLS. CLOUDS WILL OBSCURE MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN THROUGH SATURDAY. JMC .PREVIOUS DISCUSSION... THE 2ND WX SYSTEM MATERIALIZING ITSELF ALONG WARM FRONTAL BOUNDARY NW-SE OVER THE ERN PAC AND CA. UPPER JET PARALLELING THE FRONT WHICH IS ENHANCING CLOUD TOPS FROM NW OF THE NRN CA COAST...THEN SEWD INTO THE SRN HALF OF CA. RADAR BEGINNING TO DETECT MORE AND MORE ECHOES OFFSHORE AND WILL CONTINUE THE SNOW ADVSRY. WILL EXPAND ADVSRY FOR ZONE 13 INTO 18Z SAT AS SLY LOW LEVEL FLOW CONTINUES WEAK OROGRAPHIC EFFECTS INTO SHASTA CO SATURDAY MORNING. THE UPPER JET IS FORECAST TO SLIDE EWD ACROSS NORCAL LATER TONITE AND SAT AS SHORT WAVE OVER THE PAC NW MOVES INTO NWRN NV BY 12Z SAT. GFS VERTICAL MOTION PROGS SUGGEST WARM FRONTAL PCPN AND JET DYNAMICS WILL BE INCREASING OVER THE INTERIOR OF NORCAL BY 00Z SAT AND PERSISTING THRU 06Z SAT. VERTICAL MOTION THEN BEGINS TO WEAKEN AFTER THE SHORT WAVE MOVES INTO NWRN NV BY 12Z SAT. THE WAA IS FORECAST TO PEAK OVER NORCAL AROUND 06Z...THEN WEAKEN BEHIND THE SHORT WAVE...BUT WILL STILL CONTINUE OVER NORCAL THROUGH SAT. GIVEN THIS SCENARIO...WE EXPECT PCPN TO INCREASE OVER INTERIOR NORCAL DURING THE EVENING...AND BEGIN TO DECREASE AGAIN ON SAT. HOWEVER...PCPN WONT END ENTIRELY DUE TO WAA AND WHAT WEAK OROGRAPHICS ARE GENERATED FROM UPSLOPE FLOW IN NWLY FLOW ALOFT. THE WAA AND WARM FRONTAL PASSAGE SHOULD EVENTUALLY SCOUR OUT THE COLDER AIR MASS OVER OUR AREA AND WILL SLOWLY RAISE THE SNOW LEVELS ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA OVERNITE AND SAT. A THIRD WX SYSTEM WILL MOVE ACROSS THE PAC NW SAT NITE AND INTO SUN DRAGGING A COLD FRONT ACROSS NORCAL WITH A CHANCE OF SHOWERY PCPN. BEHIND THE FRONT...NLY FLOW WILL BEGIN TO SPREAD DRIER AIR OVER THE AREA AND END THE PCPN LATE SUN/SUN EVENING. A 1040+ MBS SURFACE HIGH IS FORECAST TO BUILD INTO NV MON MORNING BRINGING A COLD/DRY OFFSHORE FLOW PATTERN TO THE INTERIOR OF NORCAL. THE INCREASING NELY PRESSURE GRADIENT WILL ALSO RESULT IN BRISK/WINDY DOWNSLOPE WINDS SUN NITE AND MON. JHM .EXTENDED DISCUSSION (MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY)... RIDGING ALOFT WILL MOVE INLAND ON MONDAY WITH THE RIDGE AXIS ALONG THE WEST COAST BY MONDAY AFTERNOON. EXPECT DRIER AND WARMER CONDITIONS DURING THE DAY FROM MON-WED. UNDER CLEAR SKIES...OVERNIGHT LOWS WILL LIKELY FALL BELOW NORMAL DURING THIS TIMEFRAME WITH THE POTENTIAL FOR OVERNIGHT/EARLY MORNING FOG DEVELOPMENT IN VALLEYS. THE LAST SEVERAL RUNS OF THE GFS/ECMWF HAVE BEEN CONSISTENT WITH A VERY WET AND WINDY PATTERN AFFECTING THE WEST COAST ONCE THE RIDGE AXIS EXITS EASTWARD BY WEDNESDAY. SEVERAL SYSTEMS ARE PROGGED TO MOVE INLAND WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY NIGHT. JBB && .AVIATION... MVFR CONDITIONS WILL PREVAIL IN THE VALLEY WITH CIGS VARYING BTWN IFR AND MVFR AFT 06Z OVER THE FAR NORTHERN PART OF THE SACRAMENTO VALLEY AND AFT 12Z FROM AROUND KMYV SOUTHWARD. VSBYS MAY BECOME IFR AFT 12Z AS PRECIPITATION MAY BECOME -DZ AND LOWER CIGS AND VSBYS. THE MOUNTAINS WILL REMAIN OBSCD IN CLOUDS AND -SN/-RA OVERNIGHT AND DURING THE DAY ON SATURDAY. -RA/-SN WILL BECOME MORE WIDESPREAD BETWEEN 06Z-010Z. CURRENT FREEZING LEVELS 3000-3500 FT RISING TO 4500 FT ON SATURDAY. AS CONDITIONS SETTLE AFT 12Z. && .STO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... SNOW ADVISORY UNTIL 4 AM PST SATURDAY FOR BURNEY BASIN / EASTERN SHASTA COUNTY-CLEAR LAKE/SOUTHERN LAKE COUNTY-MOUNTAINS SOUTHWESTERN SHASTA COUNTY TO NORTHERN LAKE COUNTY. SNOW ADVISORY UNTIL 10 AM PST SATURDAY FOR SHASTA LAKE AREA / NORTHERN SHASTA COUNTY. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SACRAMENTO CA 700 AM PST FRI DEC 28 2007 CAZ013>019-063-064-066>069-291500- 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 FRI DEC 28 2007 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR INTERIOR NORTHERN CALIFORNIA. .DAY ONE...TODAY SNOW ADVISORY FROM 4 PM THIS AFTERNOON TO 4 AM PST SATURDAY FOR BURNEY BASIN / EASTERN SHASTA COUNTY-CLEAR LAKE/SOUTHERN LAKE COUNTY-MOUNTAINS SOUTHWESTERN SHASTA COUNTY TO NORTHERN LAKE COUNTY-SHASTA LAKE AREA / NORTHERN SHASTA COUNTY. * SNOW ADVISORY..............SEE WWUS46 KSTO - WSWSTO FOR DETAILS * .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN... SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY SNOW ADVISORY UNTIL 4 AM PST SATURDAY FOR BURNEY BASIN / EASTERN SHASTA COUNTY-CLEAR LAKE/SOUTHERN LAKE COUNTY-MOUNTAINS SOUTHWESTERN SHASTA COUNTY TO NORTHERN LAKE COUNTY-SHASTA LAKE AREA / NORTHERN SHASTA COUNTY. * SNOW ADVISORY..............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
1 cold/wind chill. Local standard time, as filed.
A new daily low maximum temperature record of 38 degrees was set at Redding Airport, breaking the old record of 40 degrees set in 2003.
A new daily low maximum temperature record of 39 degrees was set at Red Bluff Airport, breaking the old record of 42 degrees set in 1988.
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: 71074.