"California Storms to be Unrelenting"

[MattyB 2,010]

Here's the overview of the west coast USA at 3:20 today. They say the pressure is so low that it's essentially a cat. 2 hurricane.

[gsn 20]

A Cat 2 hurricane has SUSTAINED winds of 96-110 MPH winds... That is sustained winds not peak GUSTS!!!

[MattyB 2,010]

They were talking about the pressure. No mention of winds. I guess the wind is the important factor. Who cares if the pressure is low, right?

[osideterry 83]

Here's some info I found online. I haven't seen any pressure measurements lower than about 29.5 inches locally:

Category 1

Hurricane has a central barometric pressure of 28.94 inches or more and winds of 74 to 95 mph. The storm is accompanied by a 4 to 5 foot storm surge and causes minimal damage

Category 2

Pressure 28.5 inches to 28.93 inches, winds from 96 mph to 110 mph, storm surge 6 to 8 feet, damage moderate.

Category 3

Pressure 27.91 inches to 28.49 inches, winds from 111 mph to 130 mph, storm surge 9 to 12 feet, damage extensive.

Category 4

Pressure 27.17 inches to 27.90 inches, winds from 131 mph to 155 mph, storm surge 13 feet to 18 feet, damage extreme.

Category 5

Pressure less than 27.17 inches, winds greater than 155 mph, storm surge higher than 18 feet. Damage Catastrophic.

[DippyD 99]

Here is a neat shot of the tornado/water spout off huntington beach prior of making is way through the harbor.

ill be adding a few more shots to keep everyone posted on the fun weather.

[SunnyFl 9]

Here is a neat shot of the tornado/water spout off huntington beach prior of making is way through the harbor.

Beautiful shot, Palmfreek! Did you take that?

Spring Valley, CA has a Hazardous Wx outlook - and a request for spotter activation. That ain't good.

".DAY ONE...TONIGHT

HEAVY RAIN...STRONG GUSTY WINDS...AND SNOW AT THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS

THROUGH THIS EVENING. LOCAL FLOODING IS LIKELY. THERE WILL ALSO BE

ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS WITH THE POTENTIAL TO PRODUCE TORNADOES.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY

PERIODS OF HEAVY RAIN...STRONG GUSTY WINDS...AND SNOW IN THE

MOUNTAINS ABOVE 4500 FEET. LOCAL FLOODING IS LIKELY. THERE WILL ALSO

BE ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS WITH THE POTENTIAL TO PRODUCE TORNADOES.

" -NWS

edited to add: just heard that the pressure's at 976 mb - eeek! (sorry, I don't do well at the inches to mb conversion)

Edited January 21, 2010 by SunnyFl

[osideterry 83]

Okay, one more radar image and I'm done for the day.

This band looks to come across the whole San Diego County coastline within the next 30-45 minutes.

[SunnyFl 9]

Okay, one more radar image and I'm done for the day.

This band looks to come across the whole San Diego County coastline within the next 30-45 minutes.

Oside - does it look to you like, in the bottom third of the graphic, there's a hook in there?

[osideterry 83]

Okay, one more radar image and I'm done for the day.

This band looks to come across the whole San Diego County coastline within the next 30-45 minutes.

Oside - does it look to you like, in the bottom third of the graphic, there's a hook in there?

Yesterday's Huntington Beach map showed definite rotation. This one just looks like a long chain of heavy wind and rain. Who knows how it might develop as it move northeast.

Bracing myself. The most intense thing to hit here yet by the looks of it.

[George Sparkman 269]

Terry - That red thing is right on top of me now - that's no soft rain.....

My workers just showed up at my house - they did not like being in the shaking trailer anymore.

Happy thoughts,

George Sparkman

Cycads-n-Palms.com

[osideterry 83]

Terry - That red thing is right on top of me now - that's no soft rain.....

My workers just showed up at my house - they did not like being in the shaking trailer anymore.

Happy thoughts,

George Sparkman

Cycads-n-Palms.com

It ended here a few minutes ago. Rain up over the curbs and blowing sideways. Saw 2 lightning strikes while out on the porch.

The most intense part of this one passed through Carlsbad/Encinitas at the coast, heading for Econdido/Poway east.

[ellidro 191]

I can attest to it being terrible in Encinitas. I had hail as well as thunder and lightning. Luckily the winds have not been too bad and we definitely have received some much needed rain.

[madagascarbob 2]

Power went out in Dana Point for over an hour when that cell was over us .

[neoflora 144]

San Clemente was balmy today. We had light showers!

[doubravsky 690]

Been raining here steadily for about 4 hours. Had to go out and drain water out of the pool.... the wind wasn't too bad though..

[palmcurry 57]

Saqn Juan Cap. - Not as gusty as yesterday. Strong wind and rain for well over 3.5 hours. I actualy love this weather

[DoomsDave 8,497]

My trusty rain bucket now has about 9 inches of rainwater in it.

So far, not much wind.

[happ 141]

Much quieter today in terms of wind. Strong showers that lasted a little longer than previous few days & really cold but, overall not too bad. Hopefully things will settle down after Friday & begin warming up next week. I've recorded over 5 inches rainfall this week which is a great boost for the rain year. Aside from being a bit destructive, these storms have been heaven-sent, so to speak.

[DoomsDave 8,497]

Much quieter today in terms of wind. Strong showers that lasted a little longer than previous few days & really cold but, overall not too bad. Hopefully things will settle down after Friday & begin warming up next week. I've recorded over 5 inches rainfall this week which is a great boost for the rain year. Aside from being a bit destructive, these storms have been heaven-sent, so to speak.

Hmm. Bet you're a distance from the rain-sodden fire-denuded slopes . . . .

[BS Man about Palms 2,333]

That "red cell" was interesting when it got to Escondido where I was in a warehouse for a furnace training seminar and it was blowing so hard with rain and itty bitty hail THAT IT CAME IN THE WHIRLYBIRD VENT ABOVE AND DID LITTLE BOUNCES BEFORE IT SOAKED THE DISPLAY TABLE BELOW.

[DoomsDave 8,497]

That "red cell" was interesting when it got to Escondido where I was in a warehouse for a furnace training seminar and it was blowing so hard with rain and itty bitty hail THAT IT CAME IN THE WHIRLYBIRD VENT ABOVE AND DID LITTLE BOUNCES BEFORE IT SOAKED THE DISPLAY TABLE BELOW.

[happ 141]

Much quieter today in terms of wind. Strong showers that lasted a little longer than previous few days & really cold but, overall not too bad. Hopefully things will settle down after Friday & begin warming up next week. I've recorded over 5 inches rainfall this week which is a great boost for the rain year. Aside from being a bit destructive, these storms have been heaven-sent, so to speak.

Hmm. Bet you're a distance from the rain-sodden fire-denuded slopes . . . .

Actually I'm not very far from those foothill communities where over 1000 familes have been told to evacuate but I don't think it was too bad up there today [and many homeowners have refused to leave their houses]. Unlike mudslides, landslides can occur many days after a storm so we won't know how bad it is for a while. My own back yard is heavily wooded w/ a ground cover as well [not much erosion].

[gsn 20]

A Cat 2 hurricane has SUSTAINED winds of 96-110 MPH winds... That is sustained winds not peak GUSTS!!!

They were talking about the pressure. No mention of winds. I guess the wind is the important factor. Who cares if the pressure is low, right?

Yes I would think the winds would be the important factor, if you have low pressure without the winds ,you can hardly EQUATE it to a Cat 2 hurricane! Well seems some weather people can?

The only reason to worry about the low pressure without the winds, is if you have trouble equalizing your ears!!!

I thought the wind was forecast to be considerably STRONGER today, according to this mornings NWS Hazardous Weather statement posted earlier?

Edited January 21, 2010 by gsn

[pogobob 76]

As usual, the media stirs the pot and everyone is a "Weather Watcher". A few squalls and we are on freakout stakeout! 3.5'' of rain for the week ain't no biggie, doesn't even come close to 1998 El Nino when we got 3'' daily for weeks on end. How quick we forget

[happ 141]

As usual, the media stirs the pot and everyone is a "Weather Watcher". A few squalls and we are on freakout stakeout! 3.5'' of rain for the week ain't no biggie, doesn't even come close to 1998 El Nino when we got 3'' daily for weeks on end. How quick we forget

Good point. Rainfall amounts are less than predicted & likely due to colder air than a typical El Nino event. Both 1998 & 2005 included days of over 5 inches in my area & warmer at night. This cold air is going to do its damage though it appears frost is not likely overall [once the last storm passes]. More unstable atmosphere in recent storms than in past years. Tornado watch was issued in the Bay Area this afternoon but I don't think there was anything spotted [just severe thunderstorms around San Jose & over to Santa Cruz].

[DoomsDave 8,497]

As usual, the media stirs the pot and everyone is a "Weather Watcher". A few squalls and we are on freakout stakeout! 3.5'' of rain for the week ain't no biggie, doesn't even come close to 1998 El Nino when we got 3'' daily for weeks on end. How quick we forget

Well, false alarms are better than real ones, but don't do no false false alarms . . . . .

We gotta ways to go a'fore we're outta the woods, as it were . . .

[PalmGuyWC 1,479]

I'm sure we all are growing weary of weather reports, but here are mine for the wet week. Since last Sunday I've recieved about 6" of rain. Yesterday early, it rained constantly for about 7 hours, moderate rain, so there was very little run off.

On Tuesday afternoon after the bulk of the rain moved away to the the N/E the sun came out for about an hour. I watch CBS local dopler radar constantly when these fronts move through. I noticed a squal line was forming about 50 miles off the coast. It was a straight line from Ft. Brag to south of Monterey. It looked like someone had taken a ruler and drawn a straight line. It was moving in directly from the west. As it got closer I went outside and watched it approach. It looked angry and soon there were claps of thunder.

There was extreamly heavy rain and a little hail for about 10 minutes as it passed over and was gone. Squal lines like this are very rare in N. Calif. My yard is covered with Washingtonia fronds, but I'm waiting until it drys out before I do a pickup.

Dick

[Gtlevine 310]

I was hit hard last night, my drains are clogged and I have two feet of mud in my driveway. Glad I tied up and trimmed all my trees, the winds were intense. The only visual plant damage was I lost two main trunks off my Ficus Religiosa. KFI just said the biggest storm is still off the coast, I thought the biggest storm was last night.

[freakypalmguy 307]

I'm sure we all are growing weary of weather reports, but here are mine for the wet week. Since last Sunday I've recieved about 6" of rain. Yesterday early, it rained constantly for about 7 hours, moderate rain, so there was very little run off.

On Tuesday afternoon after the bulk of the rain moved away to the the N/E the sun came out for about an hour. I watch CBS local dopler radar constantly when these fronts move through. I noticed a squal line was forming about 50 miles off the coast. It was a straight line from Ft. Brag to south of Monterey. It looked like someone had taken a ruler and drawn a straight line. It was moving in directly from the west. As it got closer I went outside and watched it approach. It looked angry and soon there were claps of thunder.

There was extreamly heavy rain and a little hail for about 10 minutes as it passed over and was gone. Squal lines like this are very rare in N. Calif. My yard is covered with Washingtonia fronds, but I'm waiting until it drys out before I do a pickup.

Dick

Well, hopefully this is a definitive end to the drought.

I'm sure you really miss the good ole days of flying in this crud We came into LAX the other day and got the snot beat out of us (steady mod turb in driving rain), landing to the east on 7R, winds at 2000ft were 180/40+ so when we broke out the runway was visible out the center windshield, gusting to 25kts at the runway. These are the days that I don't enjoy the job all that much. I leave for Kennedy in a few hours so I'm sure It will be another fun ride getting out of the LA area.

Matt

[Nick L 5]

The high winds dealt us this out front of the clubhouse yesterday.

We've been pretty lucky here.

[MattyB 2,010]

I got 1.4" of rain last night. The most rain yet. Winds were very strong but no tornado, crazy type winds. The house only vibrated twice. It feels a lot warmer today. Currently it's light rain with some gusty wind.

[Nick L 5]

Yeah Matty, I’ve measured only, 0.09, 0.06 and today 1.60

I think here a lot of the rain just kept going sideways and never made landfall!

[MattyB 2,010]

AT 1139 AM PST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR CONTINUED TO

INDICATE A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING DESTRUCTIVE WINDS

IN EXCESS OF 80 MPH. THIS STORM WAS LOCATED 8 MILES WEST OF PACIFIC

BEACH...OR 12 MILES NORTHWEST OF CORONADO...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 45

MPH.

THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...

PACIFIC BEACH BY 1145 AM PST...

LA JOLLA BY 1150 AM PST...

DEL MAR...SOLANA BEACH AND MIRA MESA BY NOON PST...

ENCINITAS BY 1205 PM PST...

6 MILES NORTHWEST OF RANCHO BERNARDO BY 1210 PM PST...

SAN MARCOS AND LAKE SAN MARCOS BY 1215 PM PST...

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

DOPPLER RADAR HAS INDICATED SOME WEAK ROTATION WITHIN THIS STORM.

WHILE NOT IMMEDIATELY LIKELY...A TORNADO MAY STILL DEVELOP.

[OverGrown 516]

My brother who lives in Belmont Peninsula (Long Beach) said entire streets were flooded. In some places cars were 3/4 submerged. Locals moving along in kayaks in the streets. Good news is that all the surfers are able to catch waves within the breakwall.

[Justin 632]

Here in Carmel Valley, I can vouch that it was really nasty right around noon. At this exact moment, it is now sunny. We'll see if that stays.

AT 1139 AM PST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR CONTINUED TO

INDICATE A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING DESTRUCTIVE WINDS

IN EXCESS OF 80 MPH. THIS STORM WAS LOCATED 8 MILES WEST OF PACIFIC

BEACH...OR 12 MILES NORTHWEST OF CORONADO...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 45

MPH.

THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...

PACIFIC BEACH BY 1145 AM PST...

LA JOLLA BY 1150 AM PST...

DEL MAR...SOLANA BEACH AND MIRA MESA BY NOON PST...

ENCINITAS BY 1205 PM PST...

6 MILES NORTHWEST OF RANCHO BERNARDO BY 1210 PM PST...

SAN MARCOS AND LAKE SAN MARCOS BY 1215 PM PST...

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

DOPPLER RADAR HAS INDICATED SOME WEAK ROTATION WITHIN THIS STORM.

WHILE NOT IMMEDIATELY LIKELY...A TORNADO MAY STILL DEVELOP.

[bgl 2,751]

I hope everyone in California is safe and dry with a minimum of damage! Some pretty dramatic images, both here in this thread and on our TV news. Interestingly, the El Niño predictions unfortunately seem to come true (wet on the U.S. West coast and dry in Hawaii). For exactly one month, leading up to yesterday, we had a total of 1.06 inches. Yes, a measly inch for a full 31 day period. Dry and sunny weather just about every day. (Despite that, havn't done ANY watering). And then last night, a nice and fairly concistent rain: 0.60 inches overnight. And with a grey sky now, it looks like we could get some more tonight. So, at this point, less for CA and more for HI probably a good thing!

[epicure3 91]

Here in Carmel Valley, I can vouch that it was really nasty right around noon. At this exact moment, it is now sunny. We'll see if that stays.

AT 1139 AM PST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR CONTINUED TO

INDICATE A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING DESTRUCTIVE WINDS

IN EXCESS OF 80 MPH. THIS STORM WAS LOCATED 8 MILES WEST OF PACIFIC

BEACH...OR 12 MILES NORTHWEST OF CORONADO...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 45

MPH.

THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...

PACIFIC BEACH BY 1145 AM PST...

LA JOLLA BY 1150 AM PST...

DEL MAR...SOLANA BEACH AND MIRA MESA BY NOON PST...

ENCINITAS BY 1205 PM PST...

6 MILES NORTHWEST OF RANCHO BERNARDO BY 1210 PM PST...

SAN MARCOS AND LAKE SAN MARCOS BY 1215 PM PST...

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

DOPPLER RADAR HAS INDICATED SOME WEAK ROTATION WITHIN THIS STORM.

WHILE NOT IMMEDIATELY LIKELY...A TORNADO MAY STILL DEVELOP.

Yup. That's where I live and I don't recall every seeing anything like that before (wind and rain wise) including my years in TX.

[epicure3 91]

I hope everyone in California is safe and dry with a minimum of damage! Some pretty dramatic images, both here in this thread and on our TV news. Interestingly, the El Niño predictions unfortunately seem to come true (wet on the U.S. West coast and dry in Hawaii). For exactly one month, leading up to yesterday, we had a total of 1.06 inches. Yes, a measly inch for a full 31 day period. Dry and sunny weather just about every day. (Despite that, havn't done ANY watering). And then last night, a nice and fairly concistent rain: 0.60 inches overnight. And with a grey sky now, it looks like we could get some more tonight. So, at this point, less for CA and more for HI probably a good thing!

Yes. A year's worth of rain in 4 days is not the way you want to have it. But....I guess we'll take what we can get.

[pogobob 76]

This week has been good for California if you can look beyond the usual media drivel. It will end our drought if we have a second series in the coming weeks which will make this one look minor. The only reason any of this is newsworthy is the fact that greedy developers build homes where they shouldn't and arsonists burn everything every summer!

[OverGrown 516]

This week has been good for California if you can look beyond the usual media drivel. It will end our drought if we have a second series in the coming weeks which will make this one look minor. The only reason any of this is newsworthy is the fact that greedy developers build homes where they shouldn't and arsonists burn everything every summer!

I agree with you that this is good for SoCal. Some much needed water which has been long overdue.

Edited January 22, 2010 by OverGrown