High Wind in California, April 11 to 12, 2018

Name: High Wind in California, April 11 to 12, 2018
Start: 2018-04-11T13:26
End: 2018-04-12T18:15
Location: California

April 11 to 12, 2018 · NWS HNX · 11 events in 4 counties and zones

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 11

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 HNX wrote it up.

High pressure returned to the area on April 8 and kept dry conditions through the morning of the 10th. A weak low pressure system pushed through Central California during the afternoon and evening of the 10th and brought a few light showers as well as much cooler temperatures. Another low pressure system moved through Central California on the evening of April 11 through the morning of April 12. This system produced strong wind gusts across the Kern County Mountains and Deserts where several stations reported wind gusts exceeding 58 mph. In addition, several reporting station in the San Joaquin Valley had gusts exceeding 40 mph. Although this system was moisture deficient, showers produced some light precipitation during the morning of April 12 mainly over the Southern Sierra Nevada with light snowfall being observed above 7000 feet.

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 Hanford, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 11, 3:37 AM PST, 9 hours 49 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 11, 3:37 AM PST, 9 hours 49 minutes before

Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service San Joaquin Valley - Hanford CA
437 AM PDT Wed Apr 11 2018

.SYNOPSIS...
A weather system will move through the region tonight and
Thursday. This system will bring windy conditions as well as a
chance of rain and mountain snow to much of the area. High
pressure rebuilds over the region Friday through Sunday with dry
and warmer weather.

&&

.DISCUSSION...
A rather weak front moved through the region Tuesday evening with
very little precipitation but breezy conditions. Skies cleared
rapidly behind the front. After a very warm day yesterday across
the southern half of the CWA, temperatures will feel much cooler
today with highs as much as 10 to 15 degrees cooler.

Another more significant trough and associated cold front will
approach central California today and will move through tonight
and early Thursday. Forecast models bring the dynamics and the
start of precipitation into the Yosemite Park area by early
this evening and then spread the rain and mountain snow southward
overnight as the front accelerates into Kern County. Snow levels
start out around 7000 feet early this evening and fall to near
4000 feet by Thursday morning. The bulk of the precipitation will
fall in about a 12 to 15 hour period. For most of the area,
precipitation amounts will be light. In the Sierra near Yosemite,
however, we could see snow amounts up to 6 inches along with some
gusty winds. Thus a winter weather advisory has been issued from
Yosemite to Kings Canyon. For the San Joaquin Valley,
precipitation amounts are expected to be just a few hundredths of
an inch.

The coldest air and lowest snow levels arrive at the tail end of
the precipitation over Kern County around day break on Thursday
and if upslope precipitation continues long enough some light snow
may fall on the Grapevine and this needs to be watched for
potential impacts on Interstate 5 and Highway 14.

This looks to be a windy event over the Kern County mountains and
desert areas as a strong surface pressure difference develops
between Bakersfied and China Lake at 10-11 millibars. This
combined with a 120 knot jet stream aligned from northwest to
southeast across the region will allow for quite a bit of
momentum to translate to the surface. A high wind warning has been
issued for this area from late this afternoon through Thursday
evening. The higher elevations and exposed, wind prone areas of
the Sierra in Tulare County will also experience strong gusty
winds, but for a shorter duration than Kern County, with strongest
winds being late tonight and early Thursday morning.

Temperatures will continue a roller coaster ride as we have see so
far this month. High temperatures will drop another 10 degrees in
the lower elevations Thursday while the Sierra see as much as 20
degrees cooling. The ridge of high pressure rebounds Friday
through Sunday with temperatures warming once again, reaching the
80s in the San Joaquin Valley on Saturday. This will be followed
by another cooling and potentially wet system on Sunday night and
Monday. Ridging will then return by Tuesday and Wednesday of next
week for warming and drying, then possibly another trough and
cooling again next Thursday.

&&

.AVIATION...
Areas of mountain obscuration over the Southern Sierra Nevada
after 03z Thu. High winds over 35+ kts across the Kern County
Mountains and desert as well high elevations of the Sierra Nevada
after 00z Thu. Local MVFR conditions due rain showers in the San
Joaquin Valley after 06z Thurs.

&&

.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...
High Wind Warning from 8 PM this evening to 11 AM PDT Thursday
CAZ095-097>099.

Winter Weather Advisory from 8 PM this evening to 8 AM PDT
Thursday CAZ096.

&&

public...Bean
avn/fw...MV
synopsis...Bean

weather.gov/hanford

Event by event

11 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Indian Wells Vly

When: April 11, 1:26 PM PST
Where: Indian Wells Vly forecast zone
Measured: 64 kt (74 mph) measured gust
Reported by: RAWS

The Indian Wells Canyon RAWS reported a peak wind gust of 74 mph.

High Wind, Kern Cty Mtns

When: April 11, 6:00 PM PST
Where: Kern Cty Mtns forecast zone
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph) measured gust
Reported by: RAWS

The Walker Pass RAWS reported a peak wind gust of 58 mph.

High Wind, Kern Cty Mtns

When: April 11, 11:32 PM PST
Where: Kern Cty Mtns forecast zone
Measured: 67 kt (77 mph) measured gust
Reported by: RAWS

The Blue Max RAWS reported a peak wind gust of 77 mph.

High Wind, Tulare Cty Mtns

When: April 12, 1:10 AM PST
Where: Tulare Cty Mtns forecast zone
Measured: 55 kt (63 mph) measured gust
Reported by: RAWS

The Bear Peak RAWS reported a peak wind gust of 63 mph.

High Wind, Kern Cty Mtns

When: April 12, 7:27 AM PST
Where: Kern Cty Mtns forecast zone
Measured: 63 kt (72 mph) measured gust
Reported by: RAWS

The Bird Springs Pass RAWS reported a peak wind gust of 72 mph.

High Wind, Kern Cty Mtns

When: April 12, 10:14 AM PST
Where: Kern Cty Mtns forecast zone
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph) measured gust
Reported by: RAWS

The Jawbone Canyon RAWS reported a peak wind gust of 69 mph.

High Wind, Se Kern Cty Desert

When: April 12, 3:00 PM PST
Where: Se Kern Cty Desert forecast zone
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph) measured gust
Reported by: Mesonet

Cache Creek reported a peak wind gust of 58 mph.

High Wind, Se Kern Cty Desert

When: April 12, 4:20 PM PST
Where: Se Kern Cty Desert forecast zone
Measured: 58 kt (67 mph) measured gust
Reported by: AWOS

The Mojave Airport AWOS reported a peak wind gust of 67 mph.

High Wind, Se Kern Cty Desert

When: April 12, 4:42 PM PST
Where: Se Kern Cty Desert forecast zone
Measured: 53 kt (61 mph) measured gust
Reported by: ASOS

The Edwards AFB ASOS reported a peak wind gust of 61 mph.

High Wind, Se Kern Cty Desert

When: April 12, 4:53 PM PST
Where: Se Kern Cty Desert forecast zone
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph) measured gust
Reported by: Mesonet

Redrock Canyon reported a peak wind gust of 58 mph.

High Wind, Se Kern Cty Desert

When: April 12, 6:15 PM PST
Where: Se Kern Cty Desert forecast zone
Measured: 56 kt (64 mph) measured gust
Reported by: Mesonet

Mojave Warren Siding reported a peak wind gust of 65 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

Every storm in California in 2018 Every state in 2018 This day in weather history Warnings in California, April 2018

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: 739717, 739716, 739713, 739712, 739714, 739715, 739722, 739718, 739719, 739721, 739720.