Short duration strong localized downslope wind gusts on the leeward side of the Kern County Mountains most likely due to mountain wave action from strong orographically lifted mid to upper level westerly winds. Fairly stable conditions with nearby mid level high pressure were also present further creating mountain wave conditions.
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 HNX wrote it up.
Short duration strong localized downslope wind gusts on the leeward side of the Kern County Mountains most likely due to mountain wave action from strong orographically lifted mid to upper level westerly winds. Fairly stable conditions with nearby mid level high pressure were also present further creating mountain wave conditions.
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 Hanford, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 23, 12:35 PM PST, 8 hours 25 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY - HANFORD CA 135 PM PDT SAT APR 23 2016 .SYNOPSIS... HIGH PRESSURE WILL RETURN TO CENTRAL CALIFORNIA TODAY FOR A DRYING TREND AND LIGHTER WINDS. ANOTHER STORM WILL DROP INTO THE GREAT BASIN ON MONDAY AND BRING ANOTHER PERIOD OF INCREASED WINDS AND MAINLY MOUNTAIN SHOWERS. A POTENTIALLY WET STORM SYSTEM WILL IMPACT THE AREA BY THURSDAY. TEMPERATURES WILL BE NEAR OR SLIGHTLY BELOW NORMAL THROUGH THE PERIOD. && .DISCUSSION...OTHER THAN SOME CUMULUS CLOUDS THAT HAVE DEVELOPED THIS AFTERNOON...SKIES HAVE BEEN MAINLY CLEAR ACROSS THE REGION. TEMPERATURES REMAIN RELATIVELY COOL TODAY AND ARE EXPECTED TO REMAIN NEAR SEASONAL AVERAGES...WHILE FLUCTUATING SLIGHTLY...THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF THE WEEKEND AND MUCH OF NEXT WEEK. ZONAL FLOW WILL PREVAIL OVER THE AREA WITH THE NEXT LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM IMPACTING THE REGION AS EARLY AS SUNDAY EVENING. BESIDES CHANCES OF PRECIP IN THE MOUNTAIN AREAS...THE MAIN WEATHER CONCERN THROUGH MONDAY...WILL BE GUSTY WINDS...INCLUDING IN THE KERN COUNTY MOUNTAIN AND DESERT AREAS. IN ADDITION...BREEZY CONDITIONS WILL PREVAIL IN THE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY WITH LOCALLY GUSTY WINDS ALONG THE WEST SIDE ON MONDAY. RELATIVELY COOL TEMPERATURES WILL PREVAIL AS THIS LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL BE MOVING FROM THE NORTHWEST AND IS CURRENTLY CENTERED OVER THE GULF OF ALASKA. ON TUESDAY...EXPECT A BRIEF PERIOD OF HIGH PRESSURE WITH DRY CONDITIONS AND SLIGHTLY WARMER TEMPERATURES. AFTERWARD...THE NEXT CHANCE OF PRECIP WILL BEGIN WEDNESDAY AS ANOTHER STRONGER LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM APPROACHES FROM THE NORTHWEST. WE EXPECT A LEAST A SLIGHT CHANCE OF PRECIP JUST ABOUT ANYWHERE IN THE CENTRAL CALIFORNIA INTERIOR DURING THE WEDNESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY TIME FRAME. THE BEST CHANCES WILL BE DURING WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY...AS THERE REMAINS THE POTENTIAL FOR INSTABILITY DUE TO ABUNDANT COLD AIR ALOFT. THE UPPER-LEVEL LOW IS FORECAST TO BE CENTERED OVER SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA BY THURSDAY MORNING AND GRADUALLY MOVE EASTWARD BY THU NIGHT/EARLY FRI MORNING. LATEST MODEL RUNS SUGGEST SHOWERS WILL TAPER OFF DURING THE DAY ON FRIDAY AS THE UPPER-LEVEL LOW MOVES NORTHEASTWARD OVER THE GREAT BASIN. CONFIDENCE REGARDING FORECAST DETAILS AND TIMING DURING MID-WEEK AND BEYOND REMAINS MEDIUM AT BEST...ALTHOUGH IT IS LIKELY WE WILL REMAIN IN AN UNSETTLED PATTERN WITH AVERAGE TO SLIGHTLY BELOW AVERAGE TEMPERATURES THROUGH THE END OF NEXT WEEK. AS FOR NEXT WEEKEND...SOME OF THE MODELS HAVE BEEN SHOWING A RETURN TO HIGH PRESSURE REBUILDING OVER THE WEST COAST. THUS...TEMPERATURES BY NEXT SATURDAY MAY BEGIN TO WARM BACK UP TO SLIGHTLY ABOVE AVERAGE. && .AVIATION... LOCAL MVFR CEILINGS WITH SHOWERS POSSIBLE OVER THE SOUTHERN SIERRA AFTER 18Z SUNDAY. OTHERWISE...VFR CONDITIONS WILL PREVAIL ACROSS THE CENTRAL CALIFORNIA INTERIOR DURING THE NEXT 24 HOURS. && .AIR QUALITY ISSUES... NONE. && .CERTAINTY... THE LEVEL OF CERTAINTY FOR DAYS 1 AND 2 IS HIGH. THE LEVEL OF CERTAINTY FOR DAYS 3 THROUGH 7 IS MEDIUM. CERTAINTY LEVELS INCLUDE LOW...MEDIUM...AND HIGH. PLEASE VISIT WWW.WEATHER.GOV/HNX/CERTAINTY.PHP FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AN/OR TO PROVIDE FEEDBACK. && .HNX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. && PUBLIC...BSO AVN/FW...DCH SYNOPSIS...ROWE WEATHER.GOV/HANFORD
3 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Strong gusty west to northwest winds of 19-32 mph sustained and a maximum wind gust of 80 mph were measured by the Indian Wells Canyon RAWS station between 2100 PST and 2230 PST.
At 2131 PST a report of a semi-truck blown over on northbound side of US Route 395 just south Neal Ranch Avenue north of Inyokern California was received. Three major injuries from the accident were also noted, one subject was knocked unconscious and had major bleeding from the head, a second subject had received a broken leg, and a third subject had major cuts on legs and arms.
At 2151 PST US route 395 was closed to high profile vehicles due to high winds.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2016Every state in 2016This day in weather historyWarnings in California, April 2016
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: 633204, 633208, 633210.