A strong upper ridge pushed inland while a trough lingered over the Great basin before lifting out between the afternoon of May 22 and the morning of May 23. The interaction between these features produced a strong pressure gradient which produced a period of gusty winds over portions of the mountains and deserts of Kern County.
Every event with a place to put it; 1 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 HNX wrote it up.
A strong upper ridge pushed inland while a trough lingered over the Great basin before lifting out between the afternoon of May 22 and the morning of May 23. The interaction between these features produced a strong pressure gradient which produced a period of gusty winds over portions of the mountains and deserts of Kern County. Most noticeably along the Mojave Desert Slopes where several stations measured gusts exceeding 45 mph.
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 May 22, 10:05 AM PST, 11 hours 9 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Hanford CA 1105 AM PDT Sun May 22 2022 .SYNOPSIS... A warming trend is expected through midweek with summer-like heat is expected Tuesday through Thursday. Triple digit heat is possible in the San Joaquin Valley Wednesday afternoon. Dry weather will persist for at least the next seven days. && .DISCUSSION... Warming trend expected over the next few days as the dry northwest flow aloft slides eastward allowing for ridging to build overhead. The warmest day in the forecast continues to be Wednesday as the ridge axis should be moving through the region. Ensemble probabilities of reaching the century mark on Wednesday continue to increase, though the member spread has continues to be around 8-10 degrees. Nevertheless, we will likely see our first hint of summer with record setting potential temperatures. The record for Fresno, Hanford, and Madera are 102, 103, and 101 respectively. Probability of hitting those records are 60%, 27%, and 52% respectively as of this afternoon. And while not a record there is a 69%likelihood of hitting 100 degrees in Bakersfield. We do expect temperatures to moderate quickly on Thursday with ensemble guidance point to temperatures struggling to reach 90 degrees in parts of the San Joaquin Valley for the holiday weekend. Otherwise, today winds are up in along the lee slops of the Tehachapi and Southern Sierra, especially in the normal windy spots, thanks to the exiting shortwave trough. && .AVIATION... VFR conditions will prevail across Central California for at least 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.html for additional information an/or to provide feedback. && .HNX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... Wind Advisory from 6 PM this evening to 6 AM PDT Monday for CAZ338. Heat Advisory from 7 AM to 11 PM PDT Wednesday for CAZ301>307- 309>317-319-321-332. && Meadows
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
The Jawbone Canyon RAWS measured a peak wind gust of 67 mph.
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, May 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: 1015480.