A strong upper ridge built into California on May 24 and 25 resulting in a period of summer like temperatures for three days between May 24 and May 26. May 25 with the warmest day of the three with with most locations in the San Joaquin Valley and lower Sierra foothills having maximum temperatures between 100 and 104 degrees prompting the issuance of the first Heat Advisory of the season.
Every event with a place to put it; 18 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 built into California on May 24 and 25 resulting in a period of summer like temperatures for three days between May 24 and May 26. May 25 with the warmest day of the three with with most locations in the San Joaquin Valley and lower Sierra foothills having maximum temperatures between 100 and 104 degrees prompting the issuance of the first Heat Advisory of the season.
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 25, 12:51 AM PST, 9 hours 9 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Hanford CA 151 AM PDT Wed May 25 2022 .SYNOPSIS... A Heat Advisory is in effect for the lower elevations today as temperatures warm up to around 15 to 20 degrees above normal. Widespread triple digit heat will occur across the San Joaquin Valley with a few record highs possible. Slight cooling will occur Thursday then more noticeable cooling is expected Friday through the holiday weekend with temperatures falling a little below normal on Sunday and Monday. Dry weather will persist for at least the next seven days. && .DISCUSSION... High pressure over the eastern Pacific will build inland today bringing further warming. Afternoon temperatures are forecast to be around 15 to 20 degrees above climatological averages for this time of the year. Widespread triple digit heat will occur across the San Joaquin Valley today with potential for record highs at a few locations. The latest probabilistic guidance gives most of the SJ Valley a 60-70% chance of reaching 100 degrees or above today. Madera has a 45% chance of tying or breaking the record high of 101 degrees today. Fresno has a 50% chance of tying or breaking the record high of 102 degrees today. Hanford has a 24% chance of tying or breaking the record high of 103 degrees today. This will be the first day of triple digit heat so far this year, creating dangerous conditions for heat sensitive people and for those who are new to the area. A Heat Advisory remains in effect for the San Joaquin Valley, the lower Sierra Foothills, and the Kern River Valley today from 7 AM until 11 PM. The ridge shifts to the east over the Rockies on Thursday as an upper trough approaches the Pacific Northwest coast. Temperatures will cool a little but will remain around 10 to 15 degrees above normal. Most of the SJ Valley is forecast to be in the upper 90s Thursday but some areas from Fresno County south may still reach the century mark. More pronounced cooling will occur Friday and Saturday as additional s/wv energy deepens the trough across the west. Highs are forecast to be around 4 to 7 degrees above normal on Friday then near normal on Saturday. There is good agreement among model ensembles with another trough dropping down from the Gulf of Alaska on Sunday then digging down over SoCal on Monday. Highs are forecast to be around 3 to 6 degrees below normal on Sunday then as much as 10 degrees below normal on Memorial Day. Warming back to near normal is forecast on Tuesday as the trough shifts east and heights begin to rebound. Winds will become breezy on Thursday as onshore gradients begin to ramp up from the approaching trough. Windy conditions develop in the Kern County Mountains and Desert this weekend. Wind gusts to around 55 mph are probable along the Mojave Desert Slopes and could reach High Wind Warning criteria both Saturday and Sunday. && .AVIATION... VFR conditions will prevail throughout the Central California interior for at least the next 24 hours. && .AIR QUALITY ISSUES... On Wednesday May 25 2022...Unhealthy for sensitive groups in Kern and Tulare Counties and Sequoia National Park and Forest. Further information is available at Valleyair.org && .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... Heat Advisory from 7 AM this morning to 11 PM PDT this evening for CAZ301>307-309>317-319-321-332. && Public/Aviation/Fire Weather...DCH PIO/DSS........................Meadows weather.gov/hanford
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
18 heat. Local standard time, as filed.
Daytime highs ranged between 100 and 104 degrees on May 25.
Daytime highs ranged between 100 and 104 degrees on May 25.
Daytime highs ranged between 100 and 104 degrees on May 25.
Daytime highs ranged between 100 and 104 degrees on May 25.
Daytime highs ranged between 100 and 104 degrees on May 25.
Daytime highs ranged between 100 and 104 degrees on May 25.
Daytime highs ranged between 100 and 104 degrees on May 25.
Daytime highs ranged between 100 and 104 degrees on May 25.
Daytime highs ranged between 100 and 104 degrees on May 25.
Daytime highs ranged between 100 and 104 degrees on May 25.
Daytime highs ranged between 100 and 104 degrees on May 25.
Daytime highs ranged between 100 and 104 degrees on May 25.
Daytime highs ranged between 100 and 104 degrees on May 25.
Daytime highs ranged between 100 and 104 degrees on May 25.
Daytime highs ranged between 100 and 104 degrees on May 25.
Daytime highs ranged between 100 and 104 degrees on May 25.
Daytime highs ranged between 100 and 104 degrees on May 25.
Daytime highs ranged between 100 and 104 degrees on May 25.
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: 1016884, 1016885, 1016886, 1016887, 1016888, 1016889, 1016890, 1016892, 1016893, 1016894, 1016895, 1016896, 1016898, 1016899, 1016900, 1016901, 1016902, 1016903.