California, 2014

High Wind in California, June 16 to 17, 2014

June 16 to 17, 2014 · NWS SGX · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

An upper-level low pressure system, moving inland through the Pacific Northwest and northern Rockies, created strong onshore flow over southern California with periods of gusty westerly winds in the mountains and deserts for the 16th and 17th. The winds were strongest each day from late afternoon to late at night.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 3 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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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
3

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 SGX wrote it up.

An upper-level low pressure system, moving inland through the Pacific Northwest and northern Rockies, created strong onshore flow over southern California with periods of gusty westerly winds in the mountains and deserts for the 16th and 17th. The winds were strongest each day from late afternoon to late at night. Strongest winds were 20 to 30 mph, with gusts to 65 mph in the windiest locations.

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 Jun 16, 12:25 PM PST, 1 hour 35 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 16, 12:25 PM PST, 1 hour 35 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN DIEGO CA
125 PM PDT MON JUN 16 2014

.SYNOPSIS...
A LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM MOVING INLAND THROUGH THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST
AND NORTHERN ROCKIES WILL BRING STRONGER ONSHORE FLOW AND COOLING
THROUGH TUESDAY...SLOW DEEPENING OF THE MARINE LAYER...AND STRONG
AND GUSTY WEST WINDS FOR THE MOUNTAINS AND DESERTS. NIGHT AND
MORNING STRATUS WILL CONTINUE OVER THE COAST AND VALLEY SECTIONS.
GRADUAL WARMING AND A SLIGHTLY SHALLOWER MARINE LAYER FOR WEDNESDAY
INTO NEXT WEEKEND AS HIGH PRESSURE SLOWLY BUILDS OVER THE AREA.
NIGHT AND MORNING STRATUS WILL LIKELY BE CONFINED MAINLY TO THE
COAST AND WESTERN VALLEYS DURING THAT TIME.

&&

.DISCUSSION...FOR EXTREME SOUTHWESTERN CALIFORNIA INCLUDING ORANGE...
SAN DIEGO...WESTERN RIVERSIDE AND SOUTHWESTERN SAN BERNARDINO
COUNTIES...

AFTERNOON VISIBLE SATELLITE IMAGERY SHOWED THAT THE PATCHY STRATUS
FROM THIS MORNING HAS CLEARED VERY NICELY. MEANWHILE...WATER VAPOR
SATELLITE INDICATES A LARGE TROUGH OVER THE WEST COAST...WITH A LOW
PRESSURE CENTER OVER WASHINGTON. DUE TO THE DECREASED SUBSIDENCE
PROVIDED BY THE LOWER PRESSURE ALOFT...THE MARINE LAYER WAS ABLE TO
DEEPEN LAST NIGHT TO AROUND 2300-2400 FEET IN SAN DIEGO COUNTY...AND
UP TO 3000 FEET IN ORANGE COUNTY...ACCORDING TO THE 12Z MIRAMAR
SOUNDING AND AIRCRAFT SOUNDINGS. HOWEVER...WITH ONLY A 5 DEG C
INVERSION AND A SOMEWHAT THIN CLOUD LAYER...THE STRATUS CLEARED
PRETTY FAST AFTER SUNRISE. ALSO...THE LOWER PRESSURE ALOFT AND
CONTINUED COOL ONSHORE FLOW ARE BRINGING COOLER CONDITIONS
TODAY...WITH MOST LOCATIONS REPORTING TEMPERATURES THAT ARE A FEW TO
SEVERAL DEGREES LOWER THAN AT THIS TIME YESTERDAY.

STRONG ONSHORE PRESSURE GRADIENTS CONTINUE TODAY...WITH THE SAN
DIEGO TO DAGGETT GRADIENT SHOWING 8.2 MB ONSHORE. STRONG ONSHORE
GRADIENTS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH EARLY WEDNESDAY MORNING AS THE
AFOREMENTIONED TROUGH DEEPENS OVER THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST AND GREAT
BASIN. ALSO...LOCAL WRF CONTINUES TO SHOW 45-50 KT WESTERLY WINDS AT
850 MB AND SOME MOUNTAIN WAVE POTENTIAL. IN ADDITION...THE CANSAC
WRF AND LOCAL WIND GUIDANCE CONTINUES TO SHOW STRONG WINDS IN THE
MOUNTAINS AND DESERTS LATE THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH EARLY TUESDAY
MORNING...AND AGAIN LATE TUESDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH EARLY WEDNESDAY
MORNING. THE WIND ADVISORY FOR THE MOUNTAINS AND DESERTS CONTINUES
THROUGH EARLY WEDNESDAY MORNING...WITH GUSTS OF 50-55 MPH
LIKELY...AND LOCAL GUSTS OF 60 MPH POSSIBLE. THE CONTINUED ONSHORE
FLOW AND INCREASED TROUGHING FOR MONDAY THROUGH TUESDAY WILL ALSO
BRING SLIGHT DEEPENING OF THE MARINE LAYER AND CONTINUED
COOLING...WITH DAY-TIME HIGHS SEVERAL DEGREES BELOW NORMAL. BY
TUESDAY NIGHT/WEDNESDAY MORNING...THE MARINE LAYER MAY DEEPEN TO
3500 FEET...RESULTING IN NIGHT AND MORNING STRATUS DEEP INTO THE
VALLEYS.

500 MB HEIGHTS SHOULD START TO SLOWLY RISE WEDNESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY
AS THE TROUGH MOVES OFF TO THE EAST. THIS SHOULD BRING A WARMING
TREND TO THE AREA...AND LIKELY A GRADUALLY SHALLOWER MARINE LAYER.
EXPECT NIGHT AND MORNING STRATUS TO CONTINUE TO INTRUDE INTO THE
COASTAL AND WESTERN VALLEY AREAS...WITH WEAKER ONSHORE FLOW BRINGING
LIGHTER WESTERLY WINDS OVER THE MOUNTAINS AND DESERTS COMPARED TO
PREVIOUS DAYS.

CONFIDENCE IN THE FORECAST STARTS TO DIMINISH FOR THE WEEKEND...AS
THE 12Z GFS AND 12Z GEM INDICATE GENERALLY ZONAL FLOW ALOFT WITH A
COUPLE WEAK SHORT-WAVE TROUGHS MOVING OVER THE AREA THIS
WEEKEND...WHICH WOULD BRING SOME COOLING AND A DEEPER MARINE LAYER.
MEANWHILE...THE 12Z ECMWF SHOWS A RIDGE TO THE SOUTHWEST EXPANDING
NORTHEAST INTO SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA...BRINGING CONTINUED WARMING AND
A SHALLOWER MARINE LAYER.

&&

.AVIATION...
162000Z...COAST/VALLEYS...MOSTLY SUNNY SKIES AND P6SM PREVAILING
THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON. LOW CLOUDS WILL MOVE BACK ONSHORE BETWEEN
17/01-04Z THIS EVENING WITH BASES 1800 FT MSL AND TOPS 2500 FT
MSL...PUSHING 15-20 SM INLAND OVERNIGHT. SIMILAR CLEARING TIME
EXPECTED TUESDAY MORNING BETWEEN 15-17Z.

MTNS/DESERTS...W TO NW WINDS 15-25 KT WITH LOCAL GUSTS TO 40 KT WILL
PRODUCE MDT-STG UDDFS/LLWS OVER AND EAST OF THE MTNS THROUGH TUESDAY
MORNING. OTHERWISE...FEW-SCT CLOUDS AOA 20000 FEET MSL WITH
UNRESTRICTED VIS THROUGH THIS EVENING.

&&

.MARINE...
100 PM PDT...NO HAZARDOUS MARINE WEATHER CONDITIONS EXPECTED THROUGH
FRIDAY.

&&

.SKYWARN...
SKYWARN ACTIVATION IS NOT REQUESTED. HOWEVER WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE
ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS.

&&

.SGX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
CA...WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 3 AM PDT WEDNESDAY FOR THE APPLE AND LUCERNE
     VALLEYS...COACHELLA VALLEY...RIVERSIDE COUNTY MOUNTAINS...
     SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY MOUNTAINS...SAN DIEGO COUNTY
     DESERTS...SAN DIEGO COUNTY MOUNTAINS.

PZ...NONE.

&&

PUBLIC...HARRISON
AVIATION/MARINE...TS

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

3 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Apple and Lucerne Valleys

When
June 16, 2:00 PM PST to 5:00 PM PST
Where
Apple and Lucerne Valleys forecast zone
Measured
56 kt (64 mph) measured gust
Reported by
RAWS
Coordinates
34.841, -116.178 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High winds began at the Burns Canyon RAWS between 1351-1451 PST on the 16th and ended between 1551-1651 PST that evening. During this time, winds were sustained out of the southwest at 35-45 mph, with a peak gust of 64 mph recorded between 1551-1651 PST.

High Wind, Coachella Valley

When
June 16, 6:00 PM PST to 10:00 PM PST
Where
Coachella Valley forecast zone
Measured
52 kt (60 mph) measured gust
Reported by
Mesonet
Coordinates
33.744, -115.994 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High winds occurred at the Edom Hill mesonet station between 1800-2200 PST on the 16th. During this time, winds were sustained out of the northwest at 37-41 mph, with a peak gust of 60 mph recorded between 1750-1850 PST.

High Wind, San Diego County Mountains

When
June 17, 12:00 AM PST to 1:00 AM PST
Where
San Diego County Mountains forecast zone
Measured
51 kt (59 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 Volcan Mountain SDGE mesonet between 0000-0100 PST on the 17th. During this time, winds were sustained out of the west-southwest at 40-45 mph, with a peak gust of 59 mph.

What these are

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.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in California in 2014Every state in 2014This day in weather historyWarnings in California, June 2014

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: 529823, 529826, 529827.