A record-setting ridge of high pressure (600 dm over northern New Mexico) built in over the Great Basin and desert Southwest, beginning around June 29th, lasting through approximately July 7, when it hit another peak in temperatures. This resulted in extreme high temperatures, well above normal across the region during this period.
Every event with a place to put it; 8 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.
A record-setting ridge of high pressure (600 dm over northern New Mexico) built in over the Great Basin and desert Southwest, beginning around June 29th, lasting through approximately July 7, when it hit another peak in temperatures. This resulted in extreme high temperatures, well above normal across the region during this period. The hottest days in July were the 1st through the 3rd, during which several record high minimums were set, as well as highs well over 100 degrees. Prolonged heat in the higher terrain was a significant impact, like in San Diego County.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
8 excessive heat. Local standard time, as filed.
The El Mirage mesonet station reached a high of 110 degrees.
The Mormon Rock RAWS reached a high of 101 degrees. The Mill Creek RAWS reached a high of 100 degrees.
The Cathedral Canyon RAWS reached a high of 115 degrees. The Indian Wells mesonet reached a high of 122 degrees.
The Cameron RAWS reached a high of 100 degrees. The Buckman Springs mesonet reached a high of 103 degrees. The Campo ASOS reached a high of 102 degrees.
The Ocotillo Wells COOP observer recorded a high temperature of 115 degrees.
The Pinyon RAWS reached a high of 103 degrees.
The Palm Springs ASOS reached a high of 115 degrees. The Kent Sea Farms mesonet reached a high of 116 degrees. The Palm Desert mesonet reached a high of 116 degrees. The Mecca mesonet reached a high of 118 degrees.
Two Borrego Springs mesonets (BORYO and DW1021) reached a high of 118 degrees. Another Borrego Springs mesonet reached a high of 121 degrees. The Ocotillo Wells mesonet at Split Mountain Road reached a high of 116. The Borrego Springs Alert gauge recorded a high of 123 degrees.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2013Every state in 2013This day in weather historyWarnings in California, July 2013
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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 469044, 469045, 469046, 469056, 469057, 469059, 469061, 469062.