California, 2013High Wind in California, December 9, 2013
December 9, 2013 · NWS SGX · 4 events in 4 counties and zones
A 1042 mb high built in over Nevada on the 9th as the low moved off to the east with a 20-25 mb offshore pressure gradient setting up from Salt Lake City to San Diego. This produces gusty northeast winds and cool, dry air for southern California through the 10th.
Every event with a place to put it; 4 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
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- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $15,000
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 4
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.
A 1042 mb high built in over Nevada on the 9th as the low moved off to the east with a 20-25 mb offshore pressure gradient setting up from Salt Lake City to San Diego. This produces gusty northeast winds and cool, dry air for southern California through the 10th. The San Diego County mountains and foothills were again the most windy areas for this event with gusts over 65 mph.
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 San Diego, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 9, 3:25 AM PST, 1 hour 35 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Dec 9, 3:25 AM PST, 1 hour 35 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN DIEGO CA
325 AM PST MON DEC 9 2013
.SYNOPSIS...
HIGH PRESSURE BUILDING OVER NEVADA AND UTAH WILL CREATE STRONG GUSTY
NORTHEAST WINDS TODAY THROUGH EARLY TUESDAY MORNING...DECREASING
MIDDAY TUESDAY. THE DRY...COOL AIR WILL KEEP DAYTIME HIGH
TEMPERATURES WELL BELOW NORMAL DURING THE EARLY PART OF THE WEEK.
TEMPERATURES WILL MODERATE DURING THE LATTER PART OF THE WEEK AND
INTO NEXT WEEKEND AS THE AIRMASS WARMS.
&&
.DISCUSSION...FOR EXTREME SOUTHWESTERN CALIFORNIA INCLUDING ORANGE...
SAN DIEGO...WESTERN RIVERSIDE AND SOUTHWESTERN SAN BERNARDINO
COUNTIES...
A BLAST OF COOL WINTERTIME AIR HAS BEEN SETTING UP OVER THE
PLATEAU...AND IS EXPECTED TO MOVE INTO SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA OVER THE
NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS. THE LOCAL WRF SPREADS STRONG NORTHEAST WINDS
OVER MANY OF THE WIND PRONE AREAS TODAY...AND INTO THE MORNING HOURS
ON TUESDAY. THIS WILL BE A RATHER COOL EVENT WITH TEMPERATURES BELOW
NORMAL. THERE IS AN UPPER LOW JUST OFF THE COAST WHICH COULD BRING
SOME HIGH CLOUDS AT TIMES. THE BUFKIT SOUNDINGS SHOW CONTINUED
DRYING OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS AS THE COOL DRY AIR MOVES IN
FROM THE NORTHEAST. FROSTY CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED TO ACCOMPANY THIS
PATTERN.
LOOKING OUT TOWARD THURSDAY AND FRIDAY THE LOW CONTINUES TO HANG
AROUND ON THE DETERMINISTIC ECMWF MODEL. THE ENSEMBLE MEAN IS MORE
LIKE A WEAK TROUGH...BUT NO SIGNIFICANT EFFECT ON SOUTHERN
CALIFORNIA WEATHER IS EXPECTED FROM THIS LOW. TEMPERATURES COULD
CREEP BACK TO NEAR NORMAL LATE IN THE WEEK...AND REMAIN NEAR NORMAL
INTO NEXT WEEKEND.
&&
.AVIATION...
091000Z...MOSTLY CLEAR WITH UNRESTRICTED VSBY TODAY AND TONIGHT.
AREAS OF NORTHEAST WINDS 20-25 KTS GUSTING TO 50 KTS DEVELOPING THIS
MORNING AND CONTINUING...BUT WEAKENING THROUGH TONIGHT. THIS WILL
RESULT IN A PERIOD OF LLWS AT KONT AND KSNA THIS MORNING BEFORE
THOSE WINDS SURFACE THERE AFTER 15Z. STRONG UPDRAFTS/DOWNDRAFTS AND
AREAS OF LLWS OVER THE MOUNTAINS AND ADJACENT COASTAL FOOTHILLS.
&&
.FIRE WEATHER...
SEVERAL HOURS OF CRITICAL OR NEAR CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
ARE LIKELY TODAY MOUNTAIN AREAS AS WELL AS IN AND BELOW WIND PRONE
CANYONS. SURFACE NORTHEAST WINDS OF 25 MPH WITH GUSTS OVER 35
MPH...AND RH OF 10-15 PERCENT FOR SEVERAL HOURS ARE EXPECTED DURING
THE DAY. THESE CONDITIONS WILL SUBSIDE SLIGHTLY OVERNIGHT...THEN
RETURN ON TUE...BUT WEAKER. RECENT RAINS IN SOME AREAS AND
TEMPERATURES IN THE 50S WILL HELP TO LIMIT THE WILDFIRE THREAT.
&&
SKYWARN ACTIVATION IS NOT REQUESTED. HOWEVER WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE
ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS.
&&
.SGX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
HIGH WIND WARNING THROUGH TUESDAY MORNING FOR
THE ORANGE COUNTY COASTAL AREAS...SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
MOUNTAINS...SAN BERNARDINO AND RIVERSIDE COUNTY VALLEYS-THE
INLAND EMPIRE...SANTA ANA MOUNTAINS AND FOOTHILLS.
WIND ADVISORY THROUGH TUESDAY MORNING FOR THE SAN DIEGO COUNTY
VALLEYS...RIVERSIDE COUNTY MOUNTAINS...SAN DIEGO COUNTY
MOUNTAINS...COACHELLA VALLEY.
FROST ADVISORY TIL 9 AM PST TODAY FOR
THE COACHELLA VALLEY...SAN BERNARDINO AND RIVERSIDE COUNTY
VALLEYS-THE INLAND EMPIRE...SAN DIEGO COUNTY DESERTS...SAN
DIEGO COUNTY VALLEYS.
&&
PUBLIC...SMALL
AVIATION/MARINE...MM
High Wind, Santa Ana Mountains and Foothills
- When
- December 9, 5:00 AM PST to 11:00 PM PST
- Where
- Santa Ana Mountains and Foothills forecast zone
- Measured
- 75 kt (86 mph) measured gust
- Property damage
- $15,000
- Reported by
- RAWS
- Coordinates
- 33.483, -116.847 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
High winds began at the Fremont Canyon RAWS between 0551-0651 PST and ended between 1451-1551 PST on the 9th. During this time, winds gusted mostly above 60 mph with a peak gust of 86 mph measured between 1051-1151 PST.|High winds began at the Pleasants Peak mesonet between 0431-0500 PST and ended between 2230-2300 PST on the 9th. During this time, winds gusted above 60 mph off and on with a peak gust of 73 mph measured between 1230-1300 PST.|A nearby spotter reported wind gusts snapped a 36-inch diameter wooden transmission pole at its base on Orangethorpe between Lakeview and Richfield. The 60-foot tall pole was prevented from falling to the ground because the transmission lines kept it suspended above the ground. Police and Southern California Edison responded.
High Wind, San Diego County Mountains
- When
- December 9, 7:00 AM PST to 2:00 PM PST
- Where
- San Diego County Mountains forecast zone
- Measured
- 65 kt (75 mph) measured gust
- Reported by
- Mesonet
- Coordinates
- 33.028, -116.770 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
High winds began at the Sill Hill SDGE mesonet between 0710-0720 PST on the 9th and ended between 1330-1340 PST that afternoon, with a brief resurgence between 1950-2040 PST that evening. During the main high wind period, winds were sustained 40-55 mph with gusts 60-70 mph. The peak gust of 75 mph was measured twice between 0850-0910 PST.|High winds occurred at the Buckman Springs SDGE mesonet between 0810-0820 PST with a peak gust of 59 mph measured during that period.|High winds occurred at the Inaja Park SDGE mesonet between 1120-1140 PST with a peak gust of 58 mph measured during that period.
High Wind, San Bernardino and Riverside County Valleys - the Inland Empire
- When
- December 9, 11:15 AM PST to 2:30 PM PST
- Where
- San Bernardino and Riverside County Valleys - the Inland Empire forecast zone
- Measured
- 52 kt (60 mph) measured gust
- Reported by
- RAWS
- Coordinates
- 34.293, -116.086 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
High winds occurred at the Highland Springs RAWS between 1116-1416 PST on the 9th. During this time, winds gusted over 59 mph with a peak gust of 60 mph measured between 1216-1316 PST.
High Wind, San Diego County Valleys
- When
- December 9, 5:15 PM PST to 7:45 PM PST
- Where
- San Diego County Valleys forecast zone
- Measured
- 57 kt (66 mph) measured gust
- Reported by
- Mesonet
- Coordinates
- 33.028, -116.770 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
High winds occurred at the Big Black Mountain mesonet between 1718-1937 PST on the 9th with sustained winds of 45-55 mph and a peak gust of 66 mph measured between 1927-1937 PST. A mesonet station 1 mile ESE of Alpine measured a peak gust of 65 mph around 2052 PST on the 9th as well.
- High Wind
- Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
- Winter Weather in Montana, December 9 to 11, 20131 death · 7 injured · 7 events
- Winter Weather in Missouri, December 9, 20131 death · 1 event
- High Wind in Wyoming, December 9 to 10, 201377 kt wind · 36 events
- Cold in Utah, December 9, 2013$40,000 · 1 event
- Heavy Snow and High Wind in Montana, December 9 to 12, 201374 kt wind · 18 events
- Winter Weather in Arkansas, December 9, 201317 events
- Dense Fog in Virginia, December 9 to 10, 201315 events
- Blizzard in North Dakota, December 9, 201311 events
- Winter Weather in Tennessee, December 9 to 10, 201311 events
- Lake-Effect Snow and Winter Weather in Michigan, December 9 to 12, 20138 events
- Extreme Cold in Idaho, December 9, 20135 events
- Blizzard and High Wind in Montana, December 9 to 10, 201355 kt wind · 5 events
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: 489634, 489628, 489635, 489629.