Some nocturnal thunderstorms generated numerous lightning strikes over southwest Oregon in the early morning hours on 07/26/2013. The lightning started dozens of fires, two of which developed into the Big Windy Complex Wildfire.
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 MFR wrote it up.
Some nocturnal thunderstorms generated numerous lightning strikes over southwest Oregon in the early morning hours on 07/26/2013. The lightning started dozens of fires, two of which developed into the Big Windy Complex Wildfire.
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 Medford, OR wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 31, 7:55 PM PST, 4 hours 5 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEDFORD OR
855 PM PDT WED JUL 31 2013
.DISCUSSION...ALREADY MADE A MINOR UPDATE TO INCREASE POPS FOR THE
CASCADES AND ADJACENT AREAS TO THE EAST TONIGHT. HAD SEVERAL
SEVERE STORMS IN OUR NORTH CASCADES THIS EVENING FROM AROUND
CHILOQUIN NORTH TO WILLAMETTE PASS AND ONE REPORT OF QUARTER SIZED
HAIL AT THE RESORT AT CRESCENT LAKE. THOSE HAVE SINCE MOVED NORTH
OF OUR AREA, BUT CONVECTION CONTINUES TO REGENERATE ALONG THE
CASCADE CREST SOUTH INTO THE SHASTA VALLEY AREA. MODELS SHOW THIS
CONTINUING IN THE SAME BASIC AREAS THROUGH THE NIGHT, SO I
INCREASED POPS IN THESE AREAS. I DON'T THINK WE'LL SEE ANY MORE
SEVERE STORMS AS WE LOSE DAY TIME HEATING, BUT WE COULD SEE SOME
GUSTY WINDS WITH THESE CELLS, AND LIGHTNING OF COURSE.
AREAS FURTHER EAST WILL BE QUIET TONIGHT AS WILL AREAS WEST OF THE
CASCADES. THE SMOKE HAS THINNED AROUND MEDFORD BUT WEBCAMS SHOW
THAT IT'S STILL SMOKY AROUND GRANTS PASS AND ROGUE RIVER. STRATUS
ASSOCIATED WITH THE MARINE PUSH IS ALREADY INTO ROSEBURG AND WILL
LIKELY MAKE IT ALL THE WAY TO THE UMPQUA DIVIDE TONIGHT. THIS
SHOULD HELP MANY OF THE FIRES WITH MUCH HIGHER HUMIDITIES. IT MAY
ALSO SPILL OVER INTO THE LOWER ROGUE VALLEY BUT PROBABLY WON'T
MAKE IT ALL THE WAY TO MEDFORD.
HAVEN'T MADE ANY FURTHER CHANGES TO THE FORECAST AS SEVERE WEATHER
TOOK UP MOST OF MY TIME ON THIS SHIFT. PREVIOUS DISCUSSION FOLLOWS
WITH DETAILS BEYOND TONIGHT. -WRIGHT
&&
.AVIATION...STRATUS SURGE WITH MVFR TO LOCALLY IFR CIGS HAS
ALREADY PUSHED INTO KRBG AND WILL MOVE ALL THE WAY TO THE UMPQUA
DIVIDE TONIGHT. THIS STRATUS MAY SPILL OVER INTO THE LOWER ROGUE
BASIN AND MAY PUSH AS FAR AS KMFR, BUT WILL KEEP IT OUT OF THE TAF
AT KMFR FOR NOW. SMOKE HAS THINNED AT KMFR AND WILL PROBABLY WON'T
REDEVELOP AT KMFR TONIGHT AS LOW LEVEL WINDS DECOUPLE. ISOLATED TO
SCATTERED STORMS WILL CONTINUE OVERNIGHT FROM THE CASCADE CREST
EAST, INCLUDING KSIY AND KLMT. GUSTY WINDS AND LIGHTNING ARE THE
PRIMARY THREAT WITH THESE STORMS TONIGHT. CIGS AND VIS SHOULD
REMAIN VFR BUT WILL BE REDUCED TO MVFR NEAR ANY STORMS. MOUNTAINS
WILL BE OBSCURED AT TIMES TONIGHT WEST OF THE CASCADES FROM SMOKE,
STRATUS, OR A COMBINATION THEREOF. -WRIGHT
&&
.PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 300 PM PDT WED JUL 31 2013/
SHORT TERM...ANOTHER SHORTWAVE MOVING INTO THE AREA AHEAD OF A
LOW OFFSHORE IS BRINGING MOISTURE AND ENERGY INTO THE CWA.
THUNDERSTORMS ARE DEVELOPING OVER THE CASCADES AND JUST TO THE
EAST IN OREGON. BASED ON THE MODEL FORECASTS EXPECT THUNDERSTORMS
TO DEVELOP AS FAR SOUTH AS SISKIYOU COUNTY. OTHERWISE THE MAIN
THREAT IS FROM JUST WEST OF THE SOUTHERN OREGON CASCADES AND EASTWARD
INTO KLAMATH AND NORTHERN LAKE COUNTY. CONVECTIVE ACTIVITY WILL
CONTINUE INTO THE EVENING AND MAY BECOME MORE ISOLATED OVERNIGHT.
ON THURSDAY AS THE UPPER LOW MOVES INLAND EXPECT AN INCREASE IN
THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY AS EARLY AS THE LATE MORNING AND CONTINUING
INTO THE AFTERNOON FOR LOCATIONS FROM THE SOUTHERN OREGON CASCADES
EAST INTO KLAMATH AND LAKE COUNTIES. THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY IS
EXPECTED TO BE MORE FOCUSED OVER NORTHEAST PORTIONS OF THE CWA
THAN TODAY AND WILL GRADUALLY SHIFT EAST LATE IN THE AFTERNOON
INTO THE EVENING.
TODAY AND INTO THIS EVENING THE NAM IS SHOWING SURFACE BASED CAPE
OF 500 TO 1500 NEAR THE SOUTHERN OREGON CASCADES. THE GFS SHOWS
SIMILAR BUT SLIGHTLY LOWER VALUES OF CAPE. LIFTED INDICES ARE
FORECAST IN THE -2 TO -6 RANGE. ALSO AN UPPER LEVEL JET IS LOCATED
OVER NORTHERN CALIFORNIA AND EAST OF THE CASCADES. FINALLY MID
LEVEL LAPSE RATES ARE STEEP. THESE FEATURES ARE EXPECTED TO ALLOW
A POTENTIAL FOR STRONG THUNDERSTORMS TO DEVELOP, ESPECIALLY ALONG THE
SOUTHERN OREGON CASCADES AND TO THE EAST. GIVEN THE STEEP LAPSE
RATES AND DRIER AIR MASS UNDER THE STORMS, STRONG GUSTY WINDS AS
WELL AS HAIL ARE POSSIBLE THROUGH THIS EVENING.
ON THURSDAY THE UPPER JET SHIFTS EASTWARD BUT SURFACE BASED CAPE
REMAIN MODERATE. THE NAM CONTINUES TO SHOW VALUES OF 500 TO 1200
EAST OF THE CASCADES. LIFTED INDICES REMAIN NEGATIVE AROUND -2 TO
-6. MID LEVEL LAPSE RATES HOWEVER ARE NOT QUITE AS STEEP EXCEPT
FOR OVER PORTIONS OF LAKE COUNTY. SO OVERALL EXPECT A DECREASED
CHANCE FOR STRONG THUNDERSTORMS.
ADDITIONALLY TONIGHT INTO THURSDAY EXPECT A MARINE PUSH INTO
WESTERN VALLEYS IN SOUTHERN OREGON. TEMPERATURES WILL ALSO BE
COOLER ON THURSDAY. THE COOLER WEATHER CONTINUES INTO FRIDAY AS
THE UPPER LOW REMAINS OVER THE AREA. EXPECT DRY CONDITIONS ON
FRIDAY OVER THE CWA WITH THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY FORECAST TO REMAIN
NORTHEAST OF THE AREA.
AIR QUALITY WILL REMAIN AN ISSUE FOR SOME TIME WITH SMOKE
EXPECTED FOR MUCH OF THE SOUTHERN PORTION OF THE CWA, ESPECIALLY
INTO VALLEYS IN SOUTHWEST OREGON AND INTO SISKIYOU COUNTY AND
KLAMATH FALLS. FRIDAY INTO SATURDAY AN OFFSHORE WIND IS EXPECTED
WHICH MAY ALLOW BRING AREAS OF SMOKE TO THE CURRY COAST AS WELL.
LONG TERM...SATURDAY THROUGH EARLY NEXT WEEK...A WEAK UPPER
TROUGH REMAINS ALONG THE OREGON AND NORTHERN CALIFORNIA COAST OVER
THE WEEKEND AND MAY BRING A WEAK UPPER LOW INTO THE COAST EARLY
NEXT WEEK. EXPECT TEMPERATURES TO WARM AGAIN THIS WEEKEND INTO
EARLY NEXT WEEK. ALSO THE UPPER LOW MAY BRING A SLIGHT CHANCE FOR
THUNDERSTORMS THIS WEEKEND INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK, ESPECIALLY FROM
SISKIYOU COUNTY NORTH INTO THE SOUTHERN OREGON CASCADES AND JUST
EAST.
&&
.MFR WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
OR...RED FLAG WARNING UNTIL 3 PM PDT THURSDAY FOR ORZ023-026.
RED FLAG WARNING UNTIL 11 PM PDT THURSDAY FOR ORZ027>029-031.
RED FLAG WARNING UNTIL 3 PM PDT THURSDAY FOR ORZ025.
RED FLAG WARNING UNTIL 11 PM PDT THURSDAY FOR ORZ030.
CA...NONE.
PACIFIC COASTAL WATERS...NONE.PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEDFORD OR
805 PM PDT WED JUL 31 2013
...TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
...DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0730 PM HAIL 2 NE CRESCENT LAKE 43.53N 121.95W
07/31/2013 E1.00 INCH KLAMATH OR PUBLIC
QUARTER-SIZE HAIL FELL IN THUNDERSTORM HAIL
DURATION 15 MINUTES
&&
IRIS SYSTEMThe national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.
The Big Windy wildfire burned all month. As of the end of August, the fire covered 24253 acres and was 82 percent contained. 33.2 million dollars were spent on firefighting efforts.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Oregon in 2013Every state in 2013This day in weather historyWarnings in Oregon, August 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 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 466045.