The Great fire started around 1153 PST on the 1st, on the south side of Highway 78 at Scissors Crossing, near Shelter Valley. During the firefight, Highway 78 between San Felipe Rd in Scissors Crossing and Wynola Rd was closed.
Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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 SGX wrote it up.
The Great fire started around 1153 PST on the 1st, on the south side of Highway 78 at Scissors Crossing, near Shelter Valley. During the firefight, Highway 78 between San Felipe Rd in Scissors Crossing and Wynola Rd was closed. Only one firefighter sustained minor injuries and no structures or homes were threatened or damaged. The fire burned a total of 2,135 acres before being fully contained around 0600 PST on the 6th.
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 San Diego, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Oct 1, 7:40 AM PST, 4 hours 13 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN DIEGO CA 840 AM PDT SAT OCT 1 2011 .SYNOPSIS... THE THREAT OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE ACROSS THE REGION THROUGH SUNDAY...AS REMNANT MOISTURE AND INSTABILITY FROM HURRICANE HILARY SPREAD ACROSS THE REGION. A SERIES OF EARLY SEASON PACIFIC STORMS WILL THEN TAKE AIM AT CALIFORNIA NEXT WEEK...BRINGING MUCH COOLER WEATHER TO THE REGION AS WELL AS A CHANCE OF PRECIPITATION BY MIDWEEK. && .DISCUSSION...FOR EXTREME SOUTHWESTERN CALIFORNIA INCLUDING ORANGE... SAN DIEGO...WESTERN RIVERSIDE AND SOUTHWESTERN SAN BERNARDINO COUNTIES... WATER VAPOR IMAGERY CONTINUES TO SHOW THE FOUR CORNERS RIDGE OF HIGH PRESSURE SHIFTING TO THE EAST THIS MORNING...AS A LARGE TROUGH OF LOW PRESSURE DIGS ALONG THE WEST COAST. MEANWHILE...WATER VAPOR IMAGERY ALSO SHOWS THE REMNANT LOW FROM HURRICANE HILARY LOCATED NEAR 24 NORTH AND 123 WEST. AS A RESULT...SOUTHWESTERLY FLOW ALOFT IS DEVELOPING OVER SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA...HELPING TO SHIFT THE BRUNT OF THE CONVECTIVE ACTIVITY EAST OF THE AREA....ALONG THE CALIFORNIA AND ARIZONA BORDER. THE FOG IMAGERY SHOWED THAT A WEAK OUTFLOW BOUNDARY ASSOCIATED WITH THIS LINE OF CONVECTION MOVED WESTWARD ACROSS SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA EARLIER THIS MORNING...BUT IT HAS SINCE DISSIPATED. NOW...VISIBLE IMAGERY SHOWS JUST A FEW ALTOCUMULUS CASTELLANUS STREAMING ACROSS THE REGION...AS THE RESIDUAL MOISTURE FROM HURRICANE HILARY LIFTING NORTHEASTWARD IN THE FLOW. THESE CLOUDS ARE INDICATIVE OF SOME MID OR UPPER LEVEL INSTABILITY...BUT THE MODELS ARE NOT PICKING UP ON THIS. FOR THIS REASON...WILL KEEP THE CURRENT THREAT FOR THUNDERSTORMS IN THE FORECAST FOR TODAY...BUT WILL DO A QUICK UPDATE THIS MORNING TO BACK OFF THE SKY COVER A BIT. AT THIS POINT IN TIME...IT LOOKS LIKE THERE WILL BE LITTLE CHANGE FOR THE FORECAST AS SUNDAY ROLES AROUND...GIVEN THAT THE MOISTURE WILL STILL BE IN PLACE TOMORROW WITH THE SOUTHWESTERLY FLOW ALOFT. THEREFORE...THE THREAT OF UNSETTLED WEATHER CONTINUES. THINGS START TO CHANGE THROUGH EARLY NEXT WEEK...AS A SERIES OF PACIFIC STORMS TAKE AIM AT CALIFORNIA. ALTHOUGH TEMPERATURES WILL START TO COOL ON MONDAY...DRIER CONDITIONS WILL PREVAIL. BY TUESDAY THOUGH...TEMPERATURES WILL TAKE A SIGNIFICANT HIT...AS THE FIRST DECENT TROUGH DIGS ACROSS SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA. THIS TROUGH MAY ALSO BRING SOME LIGHT RAIN TO THE REGION AS WELL. HOWEVER...A MORE POTENT AND EVEN COLDER SYSTEM WILL MOVE THROUGH THE REGION ON WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY...BRINGING A MUCH BETTER CHANCE OF PRECIPITATION AS WELL AS TEMPERATURES FALLING 15 TO 35 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL. ALTHOUGH ROADS ARE STILL RELATIVELY WARM FOR THIS TIME OF YEAR...SOME HIGHER MOUNTAIN LOCATIONS MAY SEE THEIR FIRST DUSTING OF SNOW. && .AVIATION... 011500Z...COAST/VALLEYS...PREVAILING VFR CONDS EXPECTED THROUGH 02/0100 UTC. ONLY SCT-FEW CLDS WITH BASES AOA FL100 THROUGH THAT TIME. MARINE LAYER STRATUS LIKELY TO RETURN THIS EVENING BETWEEN 02/0100 UTC AND 02/0400 UTC...ALTHOUGH CONFIDENCE IN THE TIMING IS LOW AT THE MOMENT. ITS POSSIBLE THAT STRATUS WILL NOT MOVE INLAND UNTIL MUCH LATER IN THE EVENING. STRATUS SHOULD ONLY MOVE 20 MILES INLAND AT THE MOST...SO KONT WILL LIKELY NOT RECEIVE LOW CLOUDS TONIGHT. CIGS WILL BE 500-1000 FT MSL AND THERE WILL BE AREAS OF 3-5SM VSBY IN BR/HZ AND LOCAL VIS AOB 2SM IN BR/FG OVER HIGHER COASTAL TERRAIN. STRATUS SHOULD CLEAR OUT AROUND 02/1700 UTC FOR THE COASTAL AIRPORTS. MTNS/DESERTS...PARTLY CLOUDY WITH ISOLATED SHOWERS/TSTMS AFTER 18Z WITH SCT-BKN LYRS FL120. CHANCES OF TSTMS WILL DECREASE OVERNIGHT. && .SGX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE. && PUBLIC...PALMER AVIATION/MARINE...HARRISON
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN DIEGO CA 400 AM PDT SAT OCT 1 2011 CAZ042-043-048-050-055>058-060>062-PZZ750-775-020000- ORANGE COUNTY COASTAL AREAS-SAN DIEGO COUNTY COASTAL AREAS- SAN BERNARDINO AND RIVERSIDE COUNTY VALLEYS-THE INLAND EMPIRE- SAN DIEGO COUNTY VALLEYS-SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY MOUNTAINS- RIVERSIDE COUNTY MOUNTAINS-SANTA ANA MOUNTAINS AND FOOTHILLS- SAN DIEGO COUNTY MOUNTAINS-APPLE AND LUCERNE VALLEYS- COACHELLA VALLEY-SAN DIEGO COUNTY DESERTS- COASTAL WATERS FROM SAN MATEO POINT TO THE MEXICAN BORDER AND OUT 30 NM- WATERS FROM SAN MATEO POINT TO THE MEXICAN BORDER EXTENDING 30 TO 60 NM OUT INCLUDING SAN CLEMENTE ISLAND- 400 AM PDT SAT OCT 1 2011 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EXTREME SOUTHWESTERN CALIFORNIA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS...ESPECIALLY OVER THE MOUNTAINS AND DESERTS. THE FLASH FLOOD POTENTIAL INDEX IS LOW. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY THERE IS A SLIGHT CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS FOR THE MOUNTAINS AND DESERTS SUNDAY. THE FLASH FLOOD POTENTIAL INDEX IS LOW. AN EARLY SEASON PACIFIC STORM SYSTEM WILL BRING RAIN WITH STRONG GUSTY WINDS IN THE MOUNTAINS AND DESERTS LATE WEDNESDAY INTO THURSDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SKYWARN WEATHER ACTIVATION IS NOT REQUESTED FOR THIS AREA... HOWEVER WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS. MAXWELL
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2011Every state in 2011This day in weather historyWarnings in California, October 2011
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: 350444.