A low pressure system passed through the area brought windy conditions, with gusts as high as 40 mph in the Valley and above 60 mph in the Mountains. As the longwave trough continued east, a shortwave trough along its west side evolved into a cutoff low over Baja California, where it stalled.
Every event with a place to put it; 6 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 low pressure system passed through the area brought windy conditions, with gusts as high as 40 mph in the Valley and above 60 mph in the Mountains. As the longwave trough continued east, a shortwave trough along its west side evolved into a cutoff low over Baja California, where it stalled. As a result, the prevailing flow over the area shifted to the northeast, leading to a Mono wind event over the southern Sierra Nevada Mountains and high winds over the Tehachapi Mountains, Mojave Slopes, and Mojave Desert, including downslope acceleration and drying in these areas.
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 Mar 4, 9:42 AM PST, 5 hours 1 minute earlier. Its key messages:
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Hanford CA 942 AM PST Wed Mar 4 2026 && .KEY MESSAGES... 1. A significant to extreme fire risk exists in eastern Kern and eastern Tulare counties Friday through Sunday. 2. Strong wind gusts are expected through Sunday in the Tehachapi Mountains and Mojave Slopes as low pressure moves through. Wind Advisory in effect for Kern County. 3. A warming trend is expected this weekend and into next week. && .DISCUSSION... An approaching low pressure system will cross the area later today. Below-average PWAT values will limit any precipitation chances with this system, with only the mountains expected to have any chance (5-15% above 5,000 feet) of precipitation. Any snow accumulation will be limited to less than an inch. The precipitation threat ends tomorrow morning. Of greater concern with this system will be wind. A Wind Advisory is currently in effect for Kern County, with gusts in excess of 50 mph expected in the Piute Walker Basin, Tehachapi, and Mojave Desert Slopes. As we approach the weekend, the low is expected to retrograde and stall over Baja California while a potent ridge builds off the coast. This will create a conveyor built of northeasterly winds in the Kern and Tulare County mountains, which will result in significant downslope acceleration and drying, with gusts currently forecast to approach 75 mph. While fuels are still relatively moist, the wind and dry air are of a magnitude significant enough to create extremely volatile conditions in southeastern Tulare and eastern Kern Counties Friday through Sunday, and as such, appropriate fire precautions should be taken during this period. The area should experience a warming trend after Friday, with temperatures gradually approaching the upper 70s in the Valley into early next week. While the low pressure and winds will provide improved ventilation, abundant surface-level moisture will keep a risk for fog, likely patchy, across the Valley Thursday morning, particularly in the eastern portions of the Valley (10-15% chance of visibilities below a quarter-mile). && .AVIATION... VFR conditions prevail until 11Z, when MVFR conditions are possible in mist and low clouds in the Valley, particularly in the eastern half of the Valley. && .AIR QUALITY ISSUES... No air quality issues currently. && .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 and/or to provide feedback. && .HNX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... Wind Advisory from 4 PM this afternoon to 10 AM PST Thursday for CAZ333-334-338. && public...AC aviation....ND weather.gov/hanford
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
3 high wind, 3 strong wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Mesonet station Up480 Mojave 2SSE.
Mesonet station AU563 Cache Creek CHP on 58.
Mesonet station 649SE Sce Cottonwood Creek West.
Mesonet station 444SE Cottonwood Canyon.
Mesonet station SE283 Little Oak Canyon.
AWOS station kmhv Mojave Airport.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2026Every state in 2026This day in weather historyWarnings in California, March 2026
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: 1315793, 1316028, 1315792, 1315791, 1316029, 1316030.