Frost/Freeze in California

Events

1,503

Deaths

1

Injuries

5

Damage

$2.3 billion

• Frost and Freeze and Cold in California, November 27 to 29, 20195 deaths · 7 eventsAfter some active weather, skies began to clear and temperatures dropped. Cold overnight lows affected the region for a few days at the end of November. Santa Rosa tied a daily record low for November 29th of 25 degrees F.
• Heavy Rain and Frost and Freeze in California, December 15 to 17, 20082 deaths · $95,000 · 5 eventsA cold core low pressure system produced winter storm conditions causing low elevation snow, minor flooding and isolated strong wind through the period December 15 through 17, 2009.
• Frost and Freeze and Cold in California, January 1, 20192 deaths · 5 eventsCold overnight temperatures in the mid 30s to low 40s across Santa Clara county resulted in two fatalities due to cold exposure. Widespread freezing to below freezing temperatures were reported elsewhere across the region.
• Frost and Freeze and Dense Fog in California, January 2 to 6, 20131 death · $500,000 · 14 eventsJanuary began with the central and southern San Joaquin Valley under a cold, dry airmass that moved into the region.
• Frost and Freeze in California, January 11 to 24, 2007$709 million · 4 eventsA relatively dry north-to-south cold-frontal passage resulted in an intrusion of very cold arctic air into Central California on the morning of Thursday, January 11th.
• High Wind and Frost and Freeze in California, January 13 to 15, 2007$338 million · 56 kt wind · 15 eventsBetween January 13th and 15th, a very cold arctic storm brought widespread freezing temperatures and some gusty offshore winds to the area.
• High Wind and Frost and Freeze in California, December 5 to 10, 2013$440 million · 86 kt wind · 7 eventsDecember began with an upper-level ridge of high pressure over the central California interior. This ridge brought clear skies and above-normal temperatures to the region for the first two days of the month. .
• Frost and Freeze in California, December 8, 2011$300 million · 4 eventsWidespread freezing temperatures continued into December 8th across the San Joaquin Valley. Seven consecutive days of freezing temperatures took it's toll on the citrus crop in the San Joaquin Valley.
• Frost and Freeze in California, January 12 to 18, 2007$216 million · 9 eventsA combination of Arctic air, weak offshore flow, cold air advection, low humidity, and mostly clear nights resulted in bitterly cold mornings, huge crop losses, and extensive property damage.
• Frost and Freeze in California, December 8, 20091 death · $85,000 · 3 eventsA storm moved across northern and central California on December 6 leaving a cold air mass in its wake. The cold air mass led to overnight temperatures dropping below freezing.
• Frost and Freeze in California, February 20 to 21, 2018$150 million · 4 eventsA deep upper trough over the Great Basin provided for a cold northerly flow over central California for several days beginning on the afternoon of February 19.
• Frost and Freeze in California, December 21 to 24, 1998$83 million · 4 eventsAn unseasonably cold airmass produced a three-night period of sub-freezing temperatures across Central and Southern California. Agricultural interests suffered heavy crop losses.
• Frost and Freeze in California, April 4, 2001$32 million · 3 eventsA relatively late spring frost, in pockets, did extensive damage to San Joaquin Valley grapes and, to a lesser extent, some other fruits in Merced, Madera, Fresno, and Kings Counties. Temperatures were unofficially reported as low as 27 degrees F. in Madera County.
• Frost and Freeze in California, January 6 to 19, 2007$24 million · 6 eventsRecord cold wave settled upon the San Francisco and Monterey Bay Areas from January 6th through January 19th. Numerous record lows were experienced and agricultural damage totalled over $1 Billion State-Wide.
• Frost and Freeze in California, January 14 to 15, 2007$26 million · 3 eventsA very cold arctic airmass settled over the region and temperatures in the Central Valley of California dropped sharply for a relatively prolonged period of time. Many temperature records were tied and broken during the episode and the damage to area crops was extensive.
• Frost and Freeze in California, February 16 to 17, 2006$12 million · 4 eventsAfter a very mild January that encouraged earlier-than-normal deciduous orchard blooming, daytime high temperatures in Interior Central California on the 15th were much below normal following a dry cold-frontal passage.
• Frost and Freeze in California, January 12 to 14, 2013$6.5 million · 3 eventsA deep and very cold area of low pressure developed across the desert southwest during the middle of January 2013, which led to widespread freezing and sub-freezing temperatures across the lower deserts of southeastern California.
• Winter Storm and Flood in California, November 7 to 10, 2020$2.0 million · 63 kt wind · 10 eventsAn upper level trough brought notable lower elevation rain and mountain snow across Southern California from November 7th - 9th. The cold nature of the system also brought chilly temperatures to the region, especially in areas of the High Desert.
• Winter Storm and High Wind in California, December 6 to 9, 2009$1.0 million · 70 kt wind · 16 eventsA strong area of low pressure brought a wide swatch of precipitation into the Central California Interior. The precipitation arrived during the early morning hours of December 7th.
• Winter Storm and Avalanche in California, February 25 to 28, 2011$503,000 · 14 eventsWeak ridging returned to the area by the 20th, with dry, but relatively cool, conditions throughout the central California interior during the next few days. However, by February 24th, the next storm was approaching the California coast and weakening the ridge.
• Frost and Freeze in California, January 12 to 16, 2013$500,000 · 1 eventA very cold and dry air mass brought the coldest temperatures in six years across the Mojave Desert. Hard freezes occurred on four to five consecutive mornings in most places.
• Frost and Freeze in California, January 1 to 3, 2015$300,000 · 3 eventsA deep and cold upper level low pressure system and associated cold front moved across far southeast California through the New Year's holiday period and ushered in freezing temperatures to Imperial county early in January 2015.
• Frost and Freeze in California, December 17 to 20, 201662 eventsNortherly synoptic flow behind a strong trough that moved southeast through central California allowed freezing air to move southward into the San Joaquin Valley.
• Frost and Freeze in California, December 22, 2007$135,000 · 4 eventsThe cold air that accompanied the series of Pacific storms between the 18th and 20th of the month, settled into the San Joaquin Valley, plunging lows into the mid to upper 20s during the morning of the 21st.
• Dense Fog and Winter Weather in California, December 11 to 14, 2012$79,000 · 15 eventsA weak storm system moved through northern California during the night of December 4th, and moved south the next day bringing a few showers to Merced and Mariposa Counties by noon.

Frost/Freeze everywhereEvery kind of event in California

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.