California, 2018Wildfire in California, August 1 to 13, 2018
August 1 to 13, 2018 · NWS SGX · 1 event in 1 county or zone
The Cranston Fire began in late July and continued to actively burn through August 13th, 2018. It started around 1100 PST on 7/25 in the Riverside County Mountains near the town of Idyllwild.
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- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 1
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 Cranston Fire began in late July and continued to actively burn through August 13th, 2018. It started around 1100 PST on 7/25 in the Riverside County Mountains near the town of Idyllwild. Nearby communities in Idyllwild, Mountain Center and Fern Valley were evacuated. In total, the fire scorched 13,000 acres, 5 structures and resulted in many road closures.
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 Jul 31, 8:27 PM PST, 3 hours 33 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jul 31, 8:27 PM PST, 3 hours 33 minutes before
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service San Diego CA
927 PM PDT Tue Jul 31 2018
.SYNOPSIS...
Monsoonal flow will continue through Thursday with a chance for
thunderstorms each afternoon and evening, mainly over the
mountains and deserts. The southeast monsoonal flow will end
Friday and be followed by a deepening trough of low pressure over
the eastern Pacific for cooler and less humid weather over the
weekend, along with more of a marine layer presence along the
coast.
&&
.DISCUSSION...FOR EXTREME SOUTHWESTERN CALIFORNIA INCLUDING ORANGE...
SAN DIEGO...WESTERN RIVERSIDE AND SOUTHWESTERN SAN BERNARDINO
COUNTIES...
Scattered thunderstorms over the mtns and deserts this
afternoon/evening produced periods of heavy rainfall with some
locations experiencing mostly ponding of water but no significant
hydrologic events. The activity ended around 6 pm PDT and the
afternoon sounding from NKX shows very stable conditions above
about 12000 ft. The marine layer low clouds hardly made it into
the bight and remain west of San Clemente Island at this hour.
Some low clouds could form near the coast tonight, but chances
appear small.
From previous discussion...
Wednesday will be similar to today as another easterly wave,
currently over the Gulf of California, expected to drift west
along the CA/MX border. Easterly flow will continue to draw
large amounts of moisture into SoCal. Like today, storms are
likely to form over the mtns and may drift west over the
foothills and into the valleys.
Thursday appears to be the last day for thunderstorms over the
mountains. The upper level high drifts southeast over AZ, but the
southeast monsoonal winds continue to advect moisture into the
region. Precipitable water remains around 1.50 inches through the
afternoon, highest in San Diego County, and lowering in San
Bernardino County where the first signs of drier northwest flow
appear.
On Friday the upper ridge drifts farther southeast into AZ and
medium-range deterministic models show a significant drop in
atmospheric moisture. Dry northwest flow will lower the moisture
to less than 1 inch by the afternoon and this should curtail any
precipiation chances. Stronger onshore flow and a weak coastal
eddy will bring back a deeper marine layer and greater stratus
coverage.
Saturday and Sunday: A broad trough deepens off the coast of the
Pacific Northwest this weekend with dry WSW flow aloft over SoCal.
Early next week the GFS shows the trough lifting north and return
flow from the southeast pulls monsoon moisture back into SoCal. In
contrast, the ECMWF maintains the dry northwest flow into Monday,
with weaker return flow Tuesday into Wednesday.
&&
.AVIATION...
010200Z...Coast/Valleys...Small chance of low clouds, with bases
around 1000 ft MSL and tops to 1500 ft MSL, tonight mainly along the
immediate coast. VIS should be P6SM most areas. Any clouds that
develop will clear by mid-Wednesday morning.
Mountains/Deserts...Isolated to scattered TSRA are possible
Wednesday afternoon and evening, mainly over the mountains. Strong
updrafts and downdrafts will be possible near storms, along with
surface wind gusts to 40 KT and reduced VIS from heavy rain. Storm
bases will be around 7 kft MSL with tops near 50 kft MSL.
&&
.MARINE...
No hazardous marine weather is expected through Sunday.
&&
.FIRE WEATHER...
Scattered thunderstorms each afternoon and evening through
Thursday, mainly in the mountains and adjacent desert areas.
Drier air moving in from the northwest on Friday will bring lower
humidities and modest onshore flow over the weekend.
&&
.SKYWARN...
Skywarn activation is not requested. However weather spotters are
encouraged to report significant weather conditions.
&&
.SGX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
CA...NONE.
PZ...NONE.
&&
PUBLIC/FIRE WEATHER...PG
AVIATION/MARINE...JJT
Wildfire, Riverside County Mountains
- When
- August 1, 12:00 AM PST to August 13, 8:00 AM PST
- Where
- Riverside County Mountains forecast zone
- Reported by
- Fire Department/Rescue
- Coordinates
- 33.744, -115.994 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
The Cranston Fire started on July 25th and continued to burn through August 13th when it was fully extinguished. It started on 7/25 around 1100 PST in the Riverside County Mountains. By 1700 PST on 7/25, the fire had rapidly grown to 1,200 acres. In total, the Cranston Fire burned 13,000 acres, resulted in over 500 people being evacuated, and scorched 5 structures. The cause of the fire was determined to be arson.
- Wildfire
- A fire burning in wildland vegetation, with its acreage and damage where known.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
- Heat in Nevada, August 1 to 5, 201818 deaths · 1 event
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- Rip Currents in Alabama, August 1 to 5, 20183 deaths · 1 injured · 3 events
- Wildfire in California, August 1 to 18, 201838 injured · 2 events
- Wildfire in Washington, August 1 to 31, 2018$82 million · 2 events
- Wildfire in Utah, August 1 to 31, 2018$25 million · 1 event
- Rip Current in California, August 1, 20181 death · 1 event
- Wildfire in Idaho, August 1 to 31, 2018$7.7 million · 4 events
- Wildfire in Colorado, August 1 to 31, 2018$3.5 million · 1 event
- Tornadoes and Flash Flooding in Georgia, August 1 to 2, 2018$293,000 · EF1 · 14 events
- Wildfire in California, August 1 to 31, 20189 injured · 1 event
- Drought in Texas, August 1 to 31, 2018$48,000 · 28 events
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: 782702.