A strong north-south pressure gradient generated gusty northerly winds across the Santa Ynez Mountain Range in southern Santa Barbara county. Wind gusts around 60 MPH were reported.
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 LOX wrote it up.
A strong north-south pressure gradient generated gusty northerly winds across the Santa Ynez Mountain Range in southern Santa Barbara county. Wind gusts around 60 MPH were reported.
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 Los Angeles, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 13, 4:43 PM PST, 1 hour 4 minutes earlier.
SOUTHWEST CALIFORNIA AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LOS ANGELES/OXNARD CA 443 PM PST SUN DEC 13 2015 UPDATED AVIATION SECTION .SYNOPSIS... A FAST MOVING LOW WILL BRING POSSIBLE PRECIPITATION INTO THIS EVENING...WITH THE MOUNTAINS TO HAVE GUSTY WINDS AND SHOWERS INTO EARLY MONDAY. THEN A HIGH WITH OFFSHORE FLOW WILL BRING FAIR SKIES AND A WARMING TREND THROUGH FRIDAY. A COLD LOW SYSTEM WILL APPROACH BY LATE SATURDAY. && .SHORT TERM (TODAY-WED)...FAST MOVING COLD FRONT ZIPPING DOWN THE COAST TODAY DROPPING LIGHT RAIN ACROSS SLO COUNTY THIS AFTERNOON. AMOUNTS SO FAR PRETTY MUCH AS EXPECTED WITH HOURLY RATES GENERALLY A TENTH OF AN INCH OR LESS. COULD STILL SEE SOME MODERATE RAIN RATES WITH THE FRONT BUT OTHERWISE PRETTY TAME AND NO THREAT TO BURN AREAS. RAIN EXPECTED TO ARRIVE IN VENTURA/LA COUNTIES BETWEEN 5 AND 7 THIS EVENING AND BE GONE A COUPLE HOURS LATER. FORECAST AMOUNTS MIGHT BE A TOUCH ON THE HIGH SIDE, ESPECIALLY SRN AREAS BUT GENERALLY UP TO A QUARTER INCH EXPECTED WITH AMOUNTS AS HIGH AS A HALF TO THREE QUARTER IN THE SLO COUNTY COASTAL HILLS. NOT EXPECTING MUCH SNOW WITH THE FRONT ITSELF. VBG RADAR PEGGING THE MELTING LEVEL RIGHT AROUND 7000' WITH THE FRONTAL BAND WHICH MATCHES WELL WITH WHAT MODELS WERE FORECASTING. SO MAYBE A COUPLE INCHES OF SNOW AT THE HIGHER ELEVATION THIS EVENING WITH THE FRONT. SNOW LEVELS WILL FALL RAPIDLY BEHIND THE FRONT THOUGH AS THE COLD AIR MOVES IN. HOWEVER, BY THAT TIME MOISTURE WILL BE LIMITED AND MAINLY CONFINED TO A VERY SMALL AREA NEAR THE KERN COUNTY LINE. A STRONG NORTHERLY JET WILL HELP GENERATE UPSLOPE ENHANCEMENT THERE AND WITH SNOW LEVELS FALLING TO AROUND 3000' THERE COULD EASILY BE SOME LIGHT SNOW STICKING ON INTERSTATE 5 OVER THE GRAPEVINE. AMOUNTS ARE NOT LIKELY TO REACH OUR ADVISORY CRITERIA BUT THE COMBINATION OF THE 60- 80 MPH WIND GUSTS AND POSSIBLE ICE/SNOW ON THE ROADS WILL MAKE FOR VERY HAZARDOUS TRAVEL THROUGH THAT AREA LATER TONIGHT THROUGH EARLY MONDAY. GUSTY NORTHWEST TO NORTH WINDS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP IN MANY AREA TONIGHT INTO MONDAY AND CURRENT WIND ADVISORY AREA MAY NEED EXPANDING TO COVER ADDITIONAL ZONES, ESPECIALLY THOSE NEAR THE COAST. GRAPEVINE SHOWERS EXPECTED TO TAPER OFF MONDAY WITH ALL OTHER AREAS DRY AND GENERALLY SUNNY. VERY COOL TEMPS THOUGH WITH HIGHS 5-10 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL. VERY SLOW WARMING TUE/WED AS GRADIENTS TURN OFFSHORE. NOT EXPECTING ANYTHING MORE THAN LIGHT TO MODERATE SANTA ANA BREEZES BUT THE WINDS COMBINED WITH LOW HUMIDITIES WILL MAKE FOR AN ELEVATED FIRE DANGER LEVEL. JUST A SLOW WARMING TREND THROUGH WED WITH A DEGREE OR TWO OF WARMING EACH DAY. CHILLY OVERNIGHT LOWS AND POSSIBLY REQUIRING FREEZE WARNINGS FOR WIND SHELTERED PARTS OF THE VENTURA AND LA COUNTY VALLEYS, MAINLY THE OJAI AND CALABASAS AREAS. .LONG TERM (THU-SUN)...WARMING TREND TO CONTINUE WITH HIGHS PEAKING FRIDAY IN THE LOW TO MID 70S AT LOWER ELEVATIONS. LATEST MODEL TRENDS FAVOR A LATER ARRIVAL OF THE STORM FOR NEXT WEEKEND. THOUGH THE OPERATIONAL GFS STILL SHOWS A SATURDAY ARRIVAL, A MAJORITY OF THE GFS ENSEMBLES AS WELL AS THE OPERATIONAL EC AND GEM MODELS FAVOR CUTTING OFF THE SYSTEM WELL OFFSHORE AND DELAYING THE ARRIVAL UNTIL AT LEAST SUNDAY IF NOT SUNDAY NIGHT. THIS SCENARIO ACTUALLY HAS THE BEST POTENTIAL FOR BRINGING SO CAL MORE SIGNIFICANT PRECIPITATION DUE TO THE BETTER SOUTHERLY FLOW WITH THE MOISTURE. HOWEVER, THE LATEST ECMWF IS ALMOST TRACKING THE SYSTEM TOO FAR SOUTH WHICH WOULD NOT BE AS FAVORABLE FOR US. SO WHILE ODDS FAVOR AT LEAST SOME RAIN COMING NEXT WEEKEND, MUCH UNCERTAINTY REMAINS ON TIMING AND AMOUNTS. && .AVIATION...14/0000Z. AT 0000Z...THERE WAS NO MARINE INVERSION AT KLAX...HOWEVER...A DEEP MIXED LAYER WAS PRESENT UP TO 5100 FEET. VFR CONDITIONS WITH PERIODS OF IFR TO MVFR CONDITIONS NEAR OR IN ANY SHOWERS/RAIN WILL BE PREVALENT THROUGH 07Z AND IMPROVING FROM NORTH TO SOUTH. PERIODS OF MODERATE TO STRONG LOW LEVEL WIND SHEAR AND TURBULENCE ARE POSSIBLE AT ALL TERMINALS THROUGH 18Z MONDAY. KLAX AND KBUR...IFR TO MVFR CONDITIONS WILL DEVELOP IN RAIN/SHOWERS BETWEEN 01Z AND 05Z. OTHERWISE...VFR CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED. THERE IS A 40 PERCENT CHANCE OF MODERATE TO STRONG LOW LEVEL WIND SHEAR AND TURBULENCE ARE POSSIBLE BETWEEN 03Z AND 16Z. && .MARINE...13/443 PM. HIGH CONFIDENCE IN CURRENT FORECAST. ADVISORY LEVEL WEST TO NORTHWEST WINDS WILL INCREASE AND SEAS WILL BUILD BEHIND A COLD FRONT THIS EVENING. STRONG GALE FORCE EXPECTED FOR ALL WATERS BETWEEN 7 PM AND AT LEAST 3 AM. THERE IS A CHANCE THAT GALE FORCE WINDS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT BEFORE DIMINISHING ON TUESDAY. && .BEACHES...13/443 PM. A HIGH SURF ADVISORY WILL CONTINUE THROUGH AT LEAST MONDAY AFTERNOON ALONG EXPOSED WEST AND NORTHWEST FACING SHORES FROM SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY TO LOS ANGELES COUNTY. THERE IS A CHANCE THAT THE SURF ADVISORY COULD EXTENDED UNTIL TUESDAY MORNING FOR SOME BEACHES. && .LOX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... HIGH WIND WARNING (SEE LAXNPWLOX). WIND ADVISORY (SEE LAXNPWLOX). GALE WARNING (SEE LAXMWWLOX). SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY (SEE LAXMWWLOX). HIGH SURF ADVISORY (SEE LAXCFWLOX). && PUBLIC...MW AVIATION/MARINE...HALL SYNOPSIS...SETO WWW.WEATHER.GOV/LOSANGELES
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LOS ANGELES/OXNARD CA 112 PM PST SUN DEC 13 2015 CAZ034>041-044>046-051>054-059-087-088-547-548-141400- SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY CENTRAL COAST- SANTA BARBARA COUNTY CENTRAL COAST-SANTA YNEZ VALLEY- SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY INTERIOR VALLEYS-CUYAMA VALLEY- SANTA BARBARA COUNTY SOUTH COAST-VENTURA COUNTY COAST- LOS ANGELES COUNTY COAST INCLUDING DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES- VENTURA COUNTY INTERIOR VALLEYS-VENTURA COUNTY COASTAL VALLEYS- SANTA MONICA MOUNTAINS RECREATIONAL AREA- SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY MOUNTAINS- SANTA BARBARA COUNTY MOUNTAINS-VENTURA COUNTY MOUNTAINS- LOS ANGELES COUNTY MOUNTAINS EXCLUDING THE SANTA MONICA RANGE- ANTELOPE VALLEY-CATALINA ISLAND-SANTA CLARITA VALLEY- LOS ANGELES COUNTY SAN FERNANDO VALLEY- LOS ANGELES COUNTY SAN GABRIEL VALLEY- 600 AM PST SUN DEC 13 2015 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTHWESTERN CALIFORNIA. .DAY ONE... TODAY HIGH SURF WILL DIMINISH A BIT THIS AFTERNOON...BUT WILL INCREASE AGAIN TONIGHT...AND HIGH SURF CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE. GALE FORCE WINDS WILL DEVELOP LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT ACROSS ALL COASTAL WATERS. OVER LAND...RAIN WILL MOVE ACROSS THE AREA THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING WITH RAINFALL AMOUNTS GENERALLY ONE HALF INCH OR LESS. SNOW LEVELS WILL DROP OVERNIGHT...AND THERE COULD BE SOME LIGHT SNOW OVER THE GRAPEVINE TONIGHT AND MONDAY MORNING. ADDITIONALLY...STRONG AND GUSTY NORTHWEST TO NORTH WINDS WILL DEVELOP ACROSS THE AREA WITH THE STRONGEST WINDS IN THE MOUNTAINS AND DESERTS. * HIGH WIND WARNING..........SEE WWUS76 KLOX - NPWLOX FOR DETAILS * * WIND ADVISORY..............SEE WWUS76 KLOX - NPWLOX FOR DETAILS * * GALE WARNING...............SEE WHUS76 KLOX - MWWLOX FOR DETAILS * * HIGH SURF ADVISORY.........SEE WHUS46 KLOX - CFWLOX FOR DETAILS * .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN... MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY STRONG AND GUSTY NORTHWEST TO NORTH WINDS WILL CONTINUE OVER THE LAND AND WATER THROUGH MONDAY EVENING. HIGH SURF CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH MONDAY AFTERNOON ACROSS WEST AND NORTHWEST FACING BEACHES. * HIGH WIND WARNING..........SEE WWUS76 KLOX - NPWLOX FOR DETAILS * * WIND ADVISORY..............SEE WWUS76 KLOX - NPWLOX FOR DETAILS * * GALE WARNING...............SEE WHUS76 KLOX - MWWLOX FOR DETAILS * * HIGH SURF ADVISORY.........SEE WHUS46 KLOX - CFWLOX FOR DETAILS * .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. THOMPSON
2 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Strong northerly winds developed across southern Santa Barbara county. The RAWS sensor at Montecito reported a wind gust of 60 MPH while the sensor at Las Flores Canyon reported sustained winds of 43 MPH.
Strong northerly winds developed across southern Santa Barbara county. The RAWS sensor at Montecito reported a wind gust of 60 MPH while the sensor at Las Flores Canyon reported sustained winds of 43 MPH.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2015Every state in 2015This day in weather historyWarnings in California, December 2015
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: 608023, 608024.