Strong Wind in California, April 8 to 9, 2013

Name: Strong Wind in California, April 8 to 9, 2013
Start: 2013-04-08T09:00
End: 2013-04-09T15:00
Location: California

April 8 to 9, 2013 · NWS STO · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 1
Property damage: $11,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 2

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 happened

The episode as NWS STO wrote it up.

A strong trough that had brought rain and snow to interior northern California, had moved eastward of the area on Monday, April 8th. This brought strong, gusty northerly winds in its wake across the area, mainly the Central Valley, ridge tops, and wind prone mountain canyons. The strongest periods of winds were on Monday, April 8th from late morning into mid-afternoon. Breezy conditions occurred again on Tuesday, April 9th, though winds were not quite as strong. Sustained winds on Monday reached 25-35 mph with gusts as high as around 50 mph. Sustained winds on Tuesday were 20-30 mph with gusts as high as around 40 mph. Over 20,000 people were reported to have lost power due to falling trees and wind.

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 Sacramento, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 8, 8:20 AM PST, 40 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 8, 8:20 AM PST, 40 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SACRAMENTO CA
920 AM PDT MON APR 8 2013

.SHORT TERM DISCUSSION...

DEEP UPPER LOW HAS SHIFTED SE OF INTERIOR NORCAL AND MTN SHOWERS ARE
WINDING DOWN OVER THE SIERNEV. STRONG NLY FLOW IN THE WAKE OF THE
UPPER LOW WILL BRING A VERY BLUSTERY DAY TO INTERIOR NORCAL...MAINLY
IN THE VALLEY...AS THE MERIDIONAL JET CORE (150 KTS) FROM THE PAC NW
INTO NORCAL SHIFTS EWD ACROSS THE AREA THROUGH THIS EVENING...THEN
EWD INTO NV ON TUE. STRONGEST 925 MBS NLY WINDS (50-55 KTS) ARE
FORECAST TO MOVE THROUGH THE AREA ALONG WITH THE TIGHTEST GRADIENTS
THIS MORNING. (PUBLIC DID REPORT A TREE FELL ON A CAR AT P/4TH
STREETS IN DTS.) THEN...DEEPER MIXING AND THE JET SHIFTING OVERHEAD
WILL CONTINUE THE BLUSTERY CONDITIONS THROUGH THE
EVENING...RESULTING IN A SECOND WIND MAX AROUND 40-45 KTS. THE WINDS
ARE FORECAST TO DECOUPLE LATER TONITE WITH BREEZY CONDITIONS
DEVELOPING ON TUE ONCE MIXING BEGINS. PRESSURE GRADIENTS AND 925 MBS
FORECAST TO BE WEAKER ON TUE. CHILLY MAX TEMPS TODAY...MODERATING ON
TUE AS THE UPPER LOW MOVES FARTHER EWD...AND THEN WARMING AROUND 10
DEG ABOVE NORMAL ON WED AS THE ERN PAC RIDGE SHIFTS INLAND. WILL
TAKE ANOTHER LOOK AT MAX TEMPS FOR TUE IN THE AFTERNOON PACKAGE...AS
THERE MAY BE LESS MODERATION OF THE AIR MASS DUE TO LINGERING
CYCLONIC FLOW OVER THE AREA. JHM
.PREVIOUS DISCUSSION...

ANOTHER WEAKER SYSTEM IS FORECAST TO MOVE OVER THE RIDGE WEDNESDAY
NIGHT AND THURSDAY AND MAY BRING A FEW SHOWERS TO THE NORTHERN
MOUNTAINS AND NORTHERN SIERRA...BUT IS EXPECTED TO BE LESS IMPACTFUL
THAN THE CURRENT SYSTEM.

.EXTENDED DISCUSSION (FRIDAY THROUGH MONDAY)

WEAK RIDGING HANGS ON FRIDAY OVER NORCAL KEEPING REGION DRY WITH
SOME VARIABLE CLOUDINESS. MODELS ARE IN PRETTY GOOD AGREEMENT
WITH AN ELONGATED SERIES OF LOWS IN SW CANADA ON SATURDAY WITH
SUBTLE CYCLONIC FLOW INTO NORCAL. THE JET STREAM SHOULD REMAIN IN
OREGON BASED ON THE POSITION OF THE TIGHTEST 500MB HGT AND
THICKNESS PACKING. THIS WOULD KEEP MOST DYNAMICS AND PRECIP
NORTHWARD OF TEHAMA AND SHASTA COUNTIES.

ON SUNDAY AND INTO MONDAY, THE MODELS TRY TO ROTATE THE WESTERN
LOW SOUTHEASTWARD INTO THE PACNW, BRINGING A DOWNWARD TREND TO
TEMPERATURES. THE MODELS ARE IN SOME DISAGREEMENT ON THE TIMING
AT THIS POINT, BUT WE KEPT A SLIGHT CHANCE OF PRECIP OVER THE
NORTHERN MOUNTAINS WHICH IS RIGHT AROUND CLIMO. THE TIGHTENING
HEIGHT GRADIENTS SUNDAY AND MONDAY WILL LIKELY GENERATE DECENT
WESTERLY RIDGETOP WINDS OVER THE MOUNTAINS, TO INCLUDE THE
COASTAL RANGE.          JCLAPP

&&

.AVIATION...

VFR CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE NEXT 24 HOURS AT INTERIOR NORCAL TAF
SITES. MAIN CONCERN IS WINDY CONDITIONS...PARTICULARLY FROM KRBL
SOUTHWARD THROUGH THE CENTRAL VALLEY AND DELTA. MORNING NW WINDS
15-25KTS WILL REACH SUSTAINED 30-35 WITH GUSTS UP TO 45 KTS BY
THE AFTERNOON. KSCK/KMOD LOOK TO BE THE WINDIEST LOCATIONS TODAY.
WINDS SHOULD SUBSIDE WITHIN A FEW HOURS OF SUNSET THIS EVENING.
-DVC

&&

.STO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 7 PM PDT THIS EVENING CARQUINEZ STRAIT AND
DELTA...CENTRAL SACRAMENTO VALLEY...NORTHERN SACRAMENTO VALLEY...
NORTHERN SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY...SOUTHERN SACRAMENTO VALLEY.

&&

In the hours before

Local storm report, Apr 8, 5:58 AM PST, 3 hours 2 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SACRAMENTO CA
658 AM PDT MON APR 8 2013

...TIME...  ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
...DATE...  ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0655 AM     SNOW             1 SSE CEDAR RIDGE       38.06N 120.27W
04/08/2013  M1.5 INCH        TUOLUMNE           CA   TRAINED SPOTTER

            SNOW DURATION 24 HOURS

&&

IRIS SYSTEM

Local storm report, Apr 8, 6:26 AM PST, 2 hours 34 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SACRAMENTO CA
726 AM PDT MON APR 8 2013

...TIME...  ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
...DATE...  ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0720 AM     HEAVY RAIN       PACIFIC HOUSE           38.76N 120.50W
04/08/2013  M0.63 INCH       EL DORADO          CA   TRAINED SPOTTER

            HEAVY RAIN DURATION 24 HOURS

&&

IRIS SYSTEM

Local storm report, Apr 8, 7:06 AM PST, 1 hour 54 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SACRAMENTO CA
806 AM PDT MON APR 8 2013

...TIME...  ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
...DATE...  ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0800 AM     HEAVY RAIN       1 E QUINCY              39.92N 120.90W
04/08/2013  M0.73 INCH       PLUMAS             CA   TRAINED SPOTTER

            HEAVY RAIN DURATION 24 HOURS

&&

IRIS SYSTEM

Local storm report, Apr 8, 7:49 AM PST, 1 hour 11 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SACRAMENTO CA
849 AM PDT MON APR 8 2013

...TIME...  ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
...DATE...  ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0830 AM     HIGH SUST WINDS  2 WNW SACRAMENTO        38.57N 121.50W
04/08/2013  M0 MPH           SACRAMENTO         CA   PUBLIC

            TREE DOWN ON CAR AT 4TH AND P STREET

&&

IRIS SYSTEM

Local storm report, Apr 8, 8:17 AM PST, 43 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SACRAMENTO CA
917 AM PDT MON APR 8 2013

...TIME...  ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
...DATE...  ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0910 AM     NON-TSTM WND DMG 1 N SACRAMENTO          38.58N 121.47W
04/08/2013                   SACRAMENTO         CA   TRAINED SPOTTER

            TREE DOWN BLOCKING STREET AT 25TH AND E
            STREET

&&

IRIS SYSTEM

Local storm report, Apr 8, 8:17 AM PST, 43 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SACRAMENTO CA
917 AM PDT MON APR 8 2013

...TIME...  ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
...DATE...  ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0910 AM     NON-TSTM WND DMG 1 N SACRAMENTO          38.58N 121.47W
04/08/2013                   SACRAMENTO         CA   TRAINED SPOTTER

            TREE DOWN BLOCKING STREET AT 25TH AND E
            STREET CRUSHED CAR.

&&

IRIS SYSTEM

Event by event

2 strong wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Strong Wind, Northern San Joaquin Valley

When: April 8, 9:00 AM PST to April 9, 3:00 PM PST
Where: Northern San Joaquin Valley forecast zone
Measured: 39 kt (45 mph) measured gust
Injuries: 0 direct, 1 indirect
Property damage: $500
Reported by: ASOS

The Northern San Joaquin Valley experienced peak winds of 35-45 mph on Monday, April 8th. A tree fell in the road on March Ln. and Quail Lakes Dr. in Stockton, where peak winds reached 44 mph. Another large tree was ripped down on Kelly Ln. in Stockton. A tree fell down into the road in east Modesto, where winds peaked at around 37 mph. A 17-year-old student in Patterson was hit by a falling tree and suffered minor injuries.

Strong Wind, Southern Sacramento Valley

When: April 8, 9:00 AM PST to April 9, 3:00 PM PST
Where: Southern Sacramento Valley forecast zone
Measured: 43 kt (49 mph) measured gust
Property damage: $10,000
Reported by: ASOS

The Southern Sacramento Valley experienced peak winds of 40-50 mph on Monday the 8th, and 35-40 mph on Tuesday the 9th. For Monday, a large tree limb fell on top of an SUV in Lincoln, CA and broke the wind shield of the vehicle. Several trees were reported down in midtown Sacramento, CA, where highest winds were reported to be 47 mph. At 9:30am on Monday, a lady reported a tree crashing through her bedroom ceiling on Campus Commons Drive in Sacramento, causing roof and window damage. For Tuesday, a large 20-year-old California Redwood tree fell onto the roof of a home on Mavis Avenue in Orangevale, CA.

What these are

Strong Wind: Non-thunderstorm winds below high wind criteria that nonetheless caused damage or casualties.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in California in 2013 Every state in 2013 This day in weather history Warnings in California, April 2013

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: 448509, 448512.