Two closed upper low pressure systems produced widespread precipitation, high-elevation snow and lightning from March 3 to 6. The first system occurred on March 3, producing strong winds across the mountains and deserts, scattered thunderstorms, and light snow in the mountains.
Every event with a place to put it; 15 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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 SGX wrote it up.
Two closed upper low pressure systems produced widespread precipitation, high-elevation snow and lightning from March 3 to 6. The first system occurred on March 3, producing strong winds across the mountains and deserts, scattered thunderstorms, and light snow in the mountains. The second, colder system, occurred March 5 and 6, and produced heavier snow in the San Bernardino and San Diego County Mountains.
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 Mar 3, 5:31 AM PST, 2 hours 59 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service San Diego CA
531 AM PST Thu Mar 3 2022
.SYNOPSIS...
Strengthening onshore flow will spread cooling inland today with
dense fog near the coast early this morning. For tonight and
Friday, a low pressure system from the west will bring cooling,
showers, a slight chance of thunderstorms, and stronger and gusty
southwest to west winds in the mountains and deserts. A colder
storm from the northwest will bring additional showers for
Saturday and Saturday night. Then dry and warmer for Sunday into
the middle of next week with a period of gusty northeast winds
possible around late Monday into Tuesday.
&&
.DISCUSSION...FOR EXTREME SOUTHWESTERN CALIFORNIA INCLUDING ORANGE...
SAN DIEGO...WESTERN RIVERSIDE AND SOUTHWESTERN SAN BERNARDINO
COUNTIES...
.SHORT TERM (Today through Saturday)...
A low pressure system off the California coast will move across
southern California tonight and Friday with a second colder system
from the northwest moving across southern California on Saturday.
A coastal eddy has developed as expected with coastal low clouds
spreading northward along the coast, but not spreading very far
inland. Fog was initially dense along the coast beneath a strong
and shallow marine inversion. A dense fog advisory has been issued
for coastal areas until 8 AM as the shallow marine layer has been
slow to deepen. The local WRF shows deepening of the marine layer
beginning during the morning with greater deepening during the
afternoon and evening.
Showers will spread across the area during the late evening and
overnight and continue into Friday morning with the snow level
lowering to 5000 to 5500 feet. There is also a slight chance of
thunderstorms for late tonight into Friday. Through Friday night,
rainfall is expected to range from around one-half inch at the
coast to 1 to 2 inches in the mountains with one-quarter inch or
less in the deserts. For Saturday into Saturday night the snow
level will lower to 3500 to 4000 feet with additional rainfall
from around one-tenth inch or less near the coast to one-quarter
to one-half inch in the mountains.
In the mountains, the more significant snowfall is expected
through Friday with lesser snowfall at lower elevations for
Saturday into Saturday night. There will periods of gusty
southwest to west winds for tonight into Saturday with the
strongest winds for Friday night.
High temperatures for the coast and valleys will be much cooler
today with greater cooling spreading inland on Friday and a few
degrees of additional cooling on Saturday. With all of that
cooling, high temperatures on Saturday will be as much as 20 to 25
degrees below average in the mountains and for the coast and
valleys highs mostly in the 50s.
&&
.LONG TERM (Sunday through Wednesday)...
There remain sizable differences among the ensemble systems of
the global models on the weakening and eastward moving of the
large trough of low pressure over the western states for Sunday
through Wednesday. The current forecast follows the NBM forecast
of a slow warming trend. With the warming, high temperatures on
Wednesday would be near average to around 5 degrees above average.
Periods of offshore flow with gusty northeast winds are possible
too, but with very low confidence on timing of such occurrences.
&&
.AVIATION...
031030Z...Areas of low clouds and fog will continue near the coast
through 16Z. Bases 300-700 feet MSL, with vis reduced 0-5SM. Trend
will be to lift with improving vis even before scatter out around
16Z. Some areas won't scatter out for long. Increasing low clouds
after 23Z spreading ashore and inland. Bases around 1500 feet rising
to 2500 feet overnight into Friday. -SHRA/RA beginning after 08Z
lowering cigs and vis 500-1000 feet MSL and vis 3-5SM in RA. Areas
of mountains becoming obscured in RA/BR/FG after 08Z. Westerly winds
increasing after 22Z today, strongest over mountain ridges into
adjacent deserts. Gusts 35 kt increasing to 50 kt during evening
leading to areas of reduced vis 2-5SM in deserts in BLDU/BLSA along
with MOD up/downdrafts in lee of mountains.
&&
.MARINE...
Westerly winds will increase tonight with gusts 20-30 kts and
hazardous seas building to 7-12 feet. A Small Craft Advisory is in
effect from 1 AM Friday through 10 AM Sunday. There is also a slight
chance of thunderstorms tonight through Friday, which could produce
gusty erratic winds, lightning and waterspouts.
&&
.BEACHES...
There is a slight chance of thunderstorms and associated lightning
strikes late tonight through Friday. Surf of 4-6 feet is expected
late Friday afternoon through Saturday night, producing a high rip
current risk.
&&
.SKYWARN...
Skywarn activation is not requested. However weather spotters are
encouraged to report significant weather conditions.
&&
.SGX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
CA...Winter Storm Warning from midnight tonight to 10 PM PST Saturday
for Riverside County Mountains-San Bernardino County
Mountains.
Winter Weather Advisory from midnight Friday night to 2 AM PST
Sunday for San Diego County Mountains.
Wind Advisory from 7 PM this evening to noon PST Saturday for
Coachella Valley-San Diego County Deserts-San Gorgonio Pass
Near Banning.
Wind Advisory from 4 PM Friday to 4 AM PST Saturday for Apple
and Lucerne Valleys.
Dense Fog Advisory until 8 AM PST this morning for Orange County
Coastal Areas-San Diego County Coastal Areas.
PZ...Small Craft Advisory from 1 AM Friday to 10 AM PST Sunday for
Coastal Waters from San Mateo Point to the Mexican Border
and out to 30 nm-Waters from San Mateo point to the Mexican
Border Extending 30 to 60 nm out including San Clemente
Island.
&&
PUBLIC...17
AVIATION/MARINE/BEACHES...MMThe national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
14 heavy snow, 2 heavy rain, 1 strong wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Bear Mountain Snow Summit reported 15 inches of snow at 7000 feet. 72 hour snow total.
Snowfall of 10 to 12 inches measured at Snow Valley Resort. 72 hour total.
Snow accumulation of 4 inches measured in Twin Peaks at 5700 feet. 72 hour snow total.
Snowfall of 6 inches measured in Running Springs at 6200 feet in elevation. 72 hour snow total.
Snowfall of 6 to 9 inches measured in Big Bear City. 72 hour total.
Snowfall of 4 inches measured in Crestline. 72 hour snow total.
Snowfall of 6 inches measured at Arrowbear at 6200 feet. 72 hour snow total.
Trained spotter reported a peak wind gust of 49 mph.
Trained spotter reported rainfall of 0.68 inch 2 WSW El Cajon. Rain started at 1:50 AM.
NWS employee reported 1.20 inch of rain via Davis Pro Weather Station. About 10 lightning strikes from 2 to 3 AM.
Snowfall of 5 inches measured at Palomar Mountain (Birch Hill) at 5600 feet. 72 hour snow total.
Department of Highways reported 2 inches of snow. Multiple reports of cars stuck in snow on Route 330. Chain control in effect.
Department of Highways reported 4 inches of snow. Multiple reports of cars stuck in snow on Route 330. Chain control in effect.
Department of Highways reported 1 inch of snow. Black ice was reported on I-8 at Williams Road. A car lost control, skid off the road and went down the embankment around 4,100 feet. A separate solo vehicle spinout occurred at 6:55 PM.
Snow and ice covered roads contributed to a multi-car pileup on Kuffel Canyon Road at Wabash Drive. Cars kept sliding down the hill into the pileup.
Snowfall of 1 inch measured in Lucerne Valley at 3500 feet.
Estimated 1 inch of snow accumulation in Julian based on webcams at 4000 feet.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2022Every state in 2022This day in weather historyWarnings in California, March 2022
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: 1012437, 1012447, 1012448, 1012452, 1012455, 1012456, 1012461, 1012436, 1012428, 1012430, 1012459, 1012439, 1012442, 1012444, 1012445, 1012454, 1012449.