A weather system resulted in thunderstorms developing across the Southern Sacramento and Northern San Joaquin valley and adjacent foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. The storms resulted in half inch hail deep enough to cause slick road conditions, and slight damage to a carport.
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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 STO wrote it up.
A weather system resulted in thunderstorms developing across the Southern Sacramento and Northern San Joaquin valley and adjacent foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. The storms resulted in half inch hail deep enough to cause slick road conditions, and slight damage to a carport. Lightning struck a tree, causing a portion of it to split off. An EF0 tornado was also observed that uprooted a eucalyptus tree and moved a shed off it's foundation.
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 Sacramento, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 27, 9:01 AM PST, 3 hours 59 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Sacramento CA 1001 AM PDT WED APR 27 2016 .Synopsis... Scattered showers and thunderstorms today. Light snow accumulations over the higher elevations of the NorCal mountains. A little breezy behind this system on Thursday, then dry and warmer. && .Discussion... An upper level level trough with a surface cold front will quickly pass through Northern California today. Cool air aloft with this system will bring unstable conditions with scattered showers and afternoon thunderstorms. Radar and surface observations show scattered showers currently along the western side of the Sacramento Valley pushing eastward. By noon there will be the potential for showers across the forecast area. Latest model soundings are showing significant CAPE this afternoon from the northern Coastal Range and to the southeast through the southern Sacramento and northern San Joaquin valleys and extending into the Sierra. This area has the best potential for thunderstorms, though shear looks like it will fairly limited. This reduces the potential for stronger, rotating thunderstorms. Most storms are expected to be more of the relatively short-lived pulse type. The main concerns are small to moderate size hail and locally heavy rain. With relatively dry low levels, local gusty winds near storms could also be an issue. The most favorable timing for thunderstorms looks like 2-5 pm. Convection over the Valley will diminish after sunset, with some lingering showers in the mountains. Snow showers in the higher mountains could bring a few inches of wet snow late this afternoon into tonight. Travelers over mountain passes should use caution. EK && .EXTENDED DISCUSSION (Sunday THROUGH Wednesday) A ridge of high pressure will dominate the long term forecast period with warm temperatures and quiet weather. The strongest portion of the high pressure system will be Sunday and Monday, which as a result, will bring above normal temperatures to the region. The Valley could see temperatures in the mid to upper 80s, which would be 10 to 15 degrees above normal for this time of year. A higher amplitude trough of low pressure will slide down into the eastern Pacific just off shore of California Monday and Tuesday. High temperatures will cool slightly, but ranges will still be around 5 degrees above normal. Some slight chances for showers are possible along the Coastal Range, but otherwise no significant weather or precipitation is expected during the long term period. && .AVIATION... VFR conditions are expected at the terminals for the next 24 hour period. Winds will be light out of the south and will generally shift to the west or northwest direction Wednesday night after an upper level disturbance moves through the NorCal region. There could be a few wind gusts during the afternoon hours, mainly for the Stockton terminal. Showers and isolated thunderstorms are possible with the vicinity of the terminals, but confidence of direct influence is lessening at this point with short term model guidance keeping the Valley mostly dry. && .STO Watches/Warnings/Advisories... None. &&
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SACRAMENTO CA 1214 PM PDT WED APR 27 2016 CAZ019-272015- NORTHERN SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY CA- 1214 PM PDT WED APR 27 2016 ...SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT... AT 1212 PM PDT...DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING A STRONG THUNDERSTORM BETWEEN FRENCH CAMP AND MANTECA...OR 9 MILES SOUTHEAST OF STOCKTON...MOVING EAST SOUTEAST AT 15 MPH. HALF INCH HAIL...BRIEF HEAVY RAIN AND WINDS IN EXCESS OF 30 MPH WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH THIS STORM. LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE... STOCKTON...MANTECA...RIVERBANK...LATHROP...ESCALON...DEL RIO...TAFT MOSSWOOD...FARMINGTON AND FRENCH CAMP. LAT...LON 3785 12130 3791 12128 3792 12091 3769 12090 TIME...MOT...LOC 1912Z 270DEG 15KT 3786 12119 EK
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SACRAMENTO CA
1245 PM PDT WED APR 27 2016
CAZ019-272030-
NORTHERN SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY CA-
1245 PM PDT WED APR 27 2016
...SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...
AT 1245 PM PDT...DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING A STRONG THUNDERSTORM NEAR
RIVERDALE PARK...OR NEAR CERES...MOVING EAST AT 20 MPH.
HALF INCH HAIL AND WINDS IN EXCESS OF 30 MPH WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH
THIS STORM.
LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
MODESTO...TURLOCK...CERES...PATTERSON...WATERFORD...SHACKELFORD...BRET
HARTE...BYSTROM...RIVERDALE PARK...EMPIRE...HICKMAN...WEST MODESTO...
HUGHSON...DENAIR AND KEYES.
LAT...LON 3764 12114 3772 12063 3755 12061 3746 12083
3746 12112
TIME...MOT...LOC 1945Z 265DEG 19KT 3756 12104
IDMSPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SACRAMENTO CA
131 PM PDT WED APR 27 2016
CAZ016-017-064-272100-
CENTRAL SACRAMENTO VALLEY CA-CLEAR LAKE/SOUTHERN LAKE COUNTY CA-
SOUTHERN SACRAMENTO VALLEY CA-
131 PM PDT WED APR 27 2016
...SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...
AT 130 PM PDT...DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING A STRONG THUNDERSTORM NEAR
RUMSEY...MOVING SOUTH AT 20 MPH.
EAVY RAIN AND HALF INCH HAIL WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH THIS STORM.
LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
CORTINA INDIAN RANCHERIA...
ROCKY FIRE BURN AREA.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
TORRENTIAL RAINFALL IS ALSO OCCURRING WITH THIS STORM...AND MAY LEAD
TO LOCALIZED FLOODING. DO NOT DRIVE YOUR VEHICLE THROUGH FLOODED
ROADWAYS.
&&
LAT...LON 3903 12228 3884 12224 3883 12228 3885 12233
3883 12235 3887 12240 3885 12240 3881 12237
3880 12241 3900 12247
TIME...MOT...LOC 2030Z 348DEG 19KT 3889 12232
EKSPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SACRAMENTO CA 144 PM PDT WED APR 27 2016 CAZ018-019-272130- CARQUINEZ STRAIT AND DELTA CA-NORTHERN SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY CA- 144 PM PDT WED APR 27 2016 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR CENTRAL SAN JOAQUIN AND CENTRAL STANISLAUS COUNTIES UNTIL 230 PM PDT... AT 143 PM PDT...DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING A STRONG THUNDERSTORM NEAR TAFT MOSSWOOD...OR NEAR STOCKTON...MOVING EAST AT 25 MPH. DIME SIZE HAIL AND HEAVY RAIN WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH THIS STORM. LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE... STOCKTON...MODESTO...MANTECA...LATHROP...RIPON...TAFT MOSSWOOD...KENNEDY... SALIDA...FARMINGTON AND FRENCH CAMP. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING IS OCCURRING WITH THIS STORM. LIGHTNING CAN STRIKE 10 MILES AWAY FROM A THUNDERSTORM. SEEK A SAFE SHELTER INSIDE A BUILDING OR VEHICLE. THIS STORM MAY INTENSIFY...SO BE CERTAIN TO MONITOR LOCAL RADIO STATIONS AND AVAILABLE TELEVISION STATIONS FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. && LAT...LON 3785 12148 3793 12141 3796 12098 3766 12105 TIME...MOT...LOC 2043Z 273DEG 21KT 3787 12131 JBB
The Sacramento radar (KDAX), 104 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 21:00 UTC.
1 hail, 1 funnel cloud, 1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.
Half inch hail, 1 to 2 inches deep, covered area roads. This resulted in slick road conditions and did some minor damage to a mobile home carport, from the weight of the accumulated hail.
A funnel cloud was reported just outside of Plymouth.
An EF0 tornado with swirling debris was observed near Hickman elementary school by a Sheriff's deputy and several members of the public. A large eucalyptus tree was uprooted, a shed was moved off its foundation and pushed into a fence, and a green house was damaged.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2016Every state in 2016This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for California, 2016Warnings 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: 633011, 633012, 633013.